Antique French Sèvres Porcelain Quatrefoil Casket, 19th Century

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Antique French Sèvres Porcelain Quatrefoil Casket, 19th Century

About the Item

This is a fabulous antique French Sèvres Porcelain ormolu-mounted quatrefoil casket, circa 1860 in date. The shaped hinged cover decorated with a hand painted courting couple in a richly gilded border, the front and sides decorated with oval panels enclosing landscape views within richly gilded borders. The underneath bearing the interlaced L's mark enclosing 'A' for Sevres porcelain. Condition: In excellent condition. With no chips, cracks or signs of repair, please see photos for confirmation. Dimensions in cm: Height 5 x width 7 x depth 7 Dimensions in inches: Height 2.0 x width 2.8 x depth 2.8 Sèvres Porcelain traces its roots in France to early craftsmen who had small manufacturing operations in such places as Lille, Rouen. St. Cloud, and most notably Chantilly. It is from Chantilly that a cadre of workers migrated to the Chateau de Vincennes near Paris to form a larger porcelain manufactory in 1738. French King Louis XV, perhaps inspired by his rumored relationship with mistress Madame de Pompadour, took an intense interest in porcelain and moved the operation in 1756 to even larger quarters in the Paris suburb of Sèvres. Sèvres was also conveniently near the home of Madame de Pompadour and the King's own Palace at Versailles. From the outset the king's clear aim was to produce Sèvres Porcelain that surpassed the established Saxony works of Meissen and Dresden. Though the French lacked an ample supply of kaolin, a required ingredient for hard-paste porcelain (pate dure), their soft-paste porcelain (pate tendre) was fired at a lower temperature and was thus compatible with a wider variety of colors and glazes that in many cases were also richer and more vivid. Unglazed white Sèvres Porcelain "biscuit" figurines were also a great success. However, soft-paste Sèvres Porcelain was more easily broken. Therefore, early pieces of Sèvres Porcelain that remain intact have become rare indeed. The Sèvres Porcelain manufactory always seemed to be in dire financial straits despite the incredibly fine works it produced. In fact, the king's insistence that only the finest items be created may have contributed to the difficulties. Only a limited number of European nobility could afford the extravagant prices demanded for such works. King Louis XV and eventually his heir, the ill-fated Louis XVI, were obliged to invest heavily in the enterprise. Ultimately, the Sèvres Porcelain Factory produced items under the name of "Royal" and thus the well-known Sèvres mark was born. King Louis XV even mandated laws that severely restricted other porcelain production in France so as to retain a near monopoly for his Sèvres Porcelain. The king even willingly became chief salesman for the finest of his products, hosting an annual New Year's Day showing for French nobility in his private quarters at Versailles. He eagerly circulated among potential buyers, pitching the merits of ownership and policing the occasional light-fingered guest. Sèvres Porcelain may have indeed given the makers of Meissen and Dresden a run for their money by the end of the 18th century but for the French Revolution. By 1800, the Sèvres Porcelain Works were practically out of business due to the economic devastation of the new French Republic. About the time when Napoleon Bonaparte named himself Emperor of France (1804), a new director was named for the Sèvres Porcelain Manufactory. Alexandre Brongniart, highly educated in many fields, resurrected Sèvres Porcelain. Soft-paste porcelain was eliminated altogether thanks to the earlier discovery of kaolin near Limoges. For four decades until his death, Brongniart presided over monumental progress for Sèvres Porcelain, catering not only to Napoleon himself, but at last to include the more financially profitable mid-priced market in the emerging middle class.

Dimensions:
Height: 1.97 in (5 cm)Width: 2.76 in (7 cm)Depth: 2.76 in (7 cm)
Materials and Techniques:
Ormolu,Porcelain
Place of Origin:
France
Period:
1860-1869
Date of Manufacture:
circa 1860
Condition:
Seller Location:
London, GB
Reference Number:
Seller: A15841stDibs: LU950621942482