Neoclassical Porcelain
NEOCLASSICAL STYLE
Neoclassical design emerged in Europe in the 1750s, as the Age of Enlightenment reached full flower. Neoclassical furniture took its cues from the styles of ancient Rome and Athens: symmetrical, ordered, dignified forms with such details as tapered and fluted chair and table legs, backrest finials and scrolled arms.
Over a period of some 20 years, first in France and later in Britain, neoclassical design — also known as Louis XVI, or Louis Seize — would supersede the lithe and curvaceous Rococo or Louis XV style.
The first half of the 18th century had seen a rebirth of interest in classical antiquity. The "Grand Tour" of Europe, codified as a part of the proper education of a patrician gentleman, included an extended visit to Rome. Some ventured further, to sketch the ruins of ancient Greece. These drawings and others — particularly those derived from the surprising and rich archaeological discoveries in the 1730s and ’40s at the sites of the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum — caused great excitement among intellectuals and aesthetes alike.
Neoclassical furniture is meant to reflect both grace and power. The overall appearance of neoclassical chairs, tables and cabinetry is strong and rectilinear. These pieces are, in effect, classical architecture in miniature: chair and table legs are shaped like columns; cabinets are constructed with elements that mirror friezes and pediments.
Yet neoclassicism is enlivened by gilt and silver leaf, marquetry, and carved and applied ornamental motifs based on Greek and Roman sculpture: acanthus leaves, garlands, laurel wreaths, sheaves of arrow, medallions and chair splats are carved in the shapes of lyres and urns. Ormolu — or elaborate bronze gilding — was essential to French design in the 18th and 19th centuries as a cornerstone of the neoclassical and Empire styles.
As you can see from the furniture on these pages, there is a bit of whimsy in such stately pieces — a touch of lightness that will always keep neoclassicism fresh.
Find antique neoclassical furniture today on 1stDibs.
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Style: Neoclassical
Pair of figures: Jupiter and Juno, or Zeus and Hera. Bow Porcelain C1752
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
She stands barefoot, wearing a long-sleeved robe in white, deep pink and washed pale yellow and partly edged with gold; a red and gilt-topped sceptre in her right hand, an outsize pe...
Category
1750s English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Trimph Der Venus Royal Vienna Platter Framed Signed and W Bee Hive Marking
By Berger Pinh
Located in Manhasset, NY
A Vienna style porcelain burgundy-ground tray, 'triumph Der Venus' late 19th century, blue beehive mark, signed bergère Pinh. The oblong octagonal tray painted with Venus rising from the sea...
Category
Late 19th Century German Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Winter, from the Four Seasons, Bow Porcelain Factory, circa 1750
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A personification of Winter, from The Four Seasons.
Unusually fine condition for a figure of this period.
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Pair of Antique French Empire Porcelain and Ormolu-Mounted Lamps
Located in New York, NY
Pair of antique French Empire red porcelain and ormolu-mounted lamps, attributed to Sèvres. The porcelain bases of the lamps are decorated with ovals depicting bouquets of hand paint...
Category
19th Century French Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Ormolu
Tea Canister, Hop Trellis Pattern, Worcester, C1780
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
In soft paste porcelain, French shape, decorated with a variation of the scarce and popular Hops and Trellis pattern.
Prov. Lady Humphries collection....
Category
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$2,400 Sale Price
20% Off
19th Century Biscuit Statuette Young Woman with Flowers
Located in Paris, FR
19th century biscuit porcelain figurine featuring a young woman holding a bunch of flowers in her skirt. This figurine is representative of ...
Category
19th Century French Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Autumn, Bow Porcelain Factory, circa 1755
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
From a series of figures representing The Four Seasons, Autumn is shown as a young man squeezing grapes into a cup, symbolic of harvest time, and recalling classical representations ...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Pair of rectangular porcelain plates with antique scenes, early 19th century
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Pair of rectangular plates in porcelain representing antique scenes on cartouches with languished odalisques and nymphs and surrounded by putti in greyness. First frame in the medieval style and gold color; second one in celestial blue, reminding the color created by the chemist...
Category
1830s French Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Ceramic, Porcelain
Kitty Clive Figure
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
One of Bow's theatrical figures.
The actress Mrs Catherine (Kitty) Clive, 1711-1785, as Mrs Riot, the Fine Lady, introduced, with The Fine Gentleman, into David Garrick...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$25,000
Large Dish or tureen stand, Chelsea, circa 1755
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A fine tureen stand, typically painted with flowers and insects in the style of Meissen. A large and impressive piece.
Stilt marks and ground footrim.
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Early Cream Boat, Worcester, circa 1753
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A small, early boat of rare oval form, the more usual being the hexagonal.
Appealingly naïve polychrome decoration of the period, possibly done outside the factory at one of the enamelling works.
The early Worcester...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Cup & Saucer decorated with bluebells. Nantgarw C1815.
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A particularly pleasing and restrained form of decoration for this period, which allows the beauty of the porcelain to be clearly seen.
Nantgarw porcelain is particularly fine, and ...
Category
1810s Welsh Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Dessert Dish, Worcester, circa 1770
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A dessert dish, in the shape of a shell, and decorated in the Sevres manner.
Category
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
A Nun, perhaps a theatrical figure. England, probably Plymouth, circa 1750
By Plymouth Porcelain Factory 1
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
An interesting soft-paste porcelain figure of a Dominican Nun, perhaps the theatrical figure Heloise.
Although the Nun appears in various versions in European and English porcelain,...
Category
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Onyx, Porcelain, Gilt-Bronze and Cloisonnè Sevres Center, Neoclassical Style
Located in Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires
Onyx, porcelain, gilt bronze and cloisonnè Sevres center. Neoclassical Style. France late 19th century.
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Onyx, Bronze
Botanical Plate, Bow Porcelain Factory, circa 1755
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A fine octagonal plate painted in the botanical style; possibly the yellow gloriosa climbing lily.
Provenance: Taylor Collection; Robyn Robb 2003.
Filled edge chips.
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Coffee Can: Merian's Opossum, Nymphenburg, C1790
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A good example of the fine painting produced at this factory. This example with an African possum and a feline, after the engraving by George Buffons.
Category
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Teapot Stand, "Milkmaids" Pattern, Worcester, circa 1760
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Hexagonal teapot stand, with transfer print decoration of The Milkmaids.
From an engraving by Richard Hancock, one the best and most important of the en...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Tea bowl and Saucer, Chelsea, circa 1752
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
From early in the red anchor period, a fluted tea bowl and saucer, exquisitely painted with flowers and insects.
Category
1750s English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$3,920 Sale Price
20% Off
Pair of Bird Plates, Chelsea, circa 1755
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A pair of scalloped dessert plates, painted with bunches and sprays of flowers, with attractive naturalistic birds arranged around the outside.
Red anchor mark.
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$1,500 Sale Price / set
25% Off
Seal in the Form of a Lion, Chelsea, circa 1755
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A porcelain seal in for the form of a seated lion. With original gold mount, loop, and semi-precious stone: which has not been engraved.
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Plate with Coiled Phoenix, Chelsea, C1754
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A very fine plate, damasked with Gotzkowsky erhaben Blumen. Decorated after the Japanese with peonies and a coiled phoenix to the centre, using the Kakiemo...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$1,160 Sale Price
20% Off
Early Bow Porcelain Pickle Dish, circa 1748
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
In the early ‘mushroom grey’ body, probably made by hand; decorated with some very good flower painting.
Provenance: Taylor Collection; Simon Spero 2007.
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Figure of a Nun, Perhaps Heloise, Bow Porcelain Factory, circa 1750
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A classic example of early bow porcelain.
The figure is of a Dominican Nun, and is based on a continental model, probably Meissen.
Bow produced a number of apparently religious...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Tankard with Printed Decoration, Bow Porcelain Factory, circa 1758
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Pint mug, in baluster form, decorated with early transfer prints of pheasants and two sheep. Transfer printing on bow porcelain is very rare.
Prov: Taylor Coll; Winifred Williams,...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$2,940 Sale Price
30% Off
Seal, I Still Hope, Derby Porcelain Works, circa 1760
By Derby
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A delightul porcelain seal, depicting a young lady, seated on a mound. It is painted with the motto J'ESPRE ENCORE, or I Still Hope. No doubt this was intended as a gift, to be given...
Category
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Figure: Female Pedlar, Possibly Peg Woffington, Bow Porcelain, circa 1758
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
On a mound base decorated with painted floral sprigs. She wears a pale pink-mauve washed shift with iron-red sleeves and cloak, pale mauve and pink stomacher and a sprigged white shi...
Category
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$10,500 Sale Price
30% Off
Double-Handled Sauce Boat, Chantilly, circa 1770
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A double-handled sauce boat, with simple cobalt decoration.
Category
Late 18th Century French Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$2,400 Sale Price
20% Off
Pair of Lions. Bow Porcelain C1750
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
An attractive pair of lions, in the white; possibly based on a Chinese original.
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$17,000 / set
Pair of Itinerant Ballad Singer figures. Bow porcelain C1748
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Flemish man and wife, in the white. He wears an open coat, waistcoat, breeches and tricorn hat, and plays a hurdy-gurdy. She wears a sleeved dress, long apron and linen cap and carri...
Category
1740s English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$12,950 Sale Price / set
30% Off
Doctor, from the Commedia Dell'arte, Bow Porcelain, circa 1752
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Il Dottore from the Commedia dell’Arte, in the white.
He stands in an histrionic pose against a tree stump and wears a high brimmed hat (presumably a black academic bonnet), long-buttoned coat over frilled cuffs, falling jabeaux, breeches, boots and a cloak; his right hand on hip, his left arm and hand raised. Slightly grey-white porcelain; even, unctuous glaze. Straw translucency. Underside wiped; air hole at centre. Square hole at rear for mount. Measure: H 6.3 in (16 cm).
Provenance: Taylor Collection, from Stockspring Antiques, London, 1998. The Miss G...
Category
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$7,000 Sale Price
30% Off
Figure of The Vintner's Companion, Bow Porcelain Factory, circa 1748
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Moulded in a dense body in typical muses modeller style and with slightly drab glaze. She stands by a fruiting vinestock and carries an open basket of grapes in her right hand, her e...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$4,690 Sale Price
30% Off
Figure, Sportsman Toper, Bow Porcelain Factory, circa 1751
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Probably an early prototype, the largely open base showing an apparently unique structure described by Watney as ‘a favourite primitive buttressed by a strong overall cone-shape and further strengthened by a cut-out additional layer inside the base in the manner of pastry making.’ (Freeman Collection, Forward, 1982).
Toper is an old English word for a drunk.
Annulet Mark.
Prov: Taylor Coll, Albert Amor...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$4,900 Sale Price
30% Off
Figure: David Garrick and the Shoeshine Boy, Bow Porcelain, circa 1751
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A fashionably dressed gentleman, almost certainly the actor David Garrick: he wears a white frockcoat, pink waistcoat and red breeches, all with embroide...
Category
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Bell-Shaped Mug, Transfer Printed with Masonic Emblems, Worcester, circa 1770
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A lovely baluster-shaped mug, decorated with Masonic transfer prints. The shape delightful, the decoration full of interest.
Category
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Figure of Pointing Boy by Bow Porcelain Factory, circa 1751
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Presumably based on the work of the Flemish sculptor François Duquesnoy (1597-1643), also known as Il Fiammingo.
A small series of Chelsea figures from the late 1740s was also ba...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$5,250 Sale Price
30% Off
Large Tankard, Worcester, circa 1770, Later Decorated
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
A fine, large 18th century tankard, redecorated in the 19th century with a scene of hare coursing.
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$2,400 Sale Price
20% Off
Cherub Candlestick, in the White, Bow Porcelain Factory, circa 1750
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
This example illustrated Tilley 1957, Pl. LXVII, #203 who, p.127, also draws attention to the similarity of the modelling of the figure and the Bow Mongolian busts, and their similar...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$7,000 Sale Price
30% Off
Sèvres-Style Porcelain Pedestal
Located in New Orleans, LA
This pedestal exhibits the style and grace of the famed Sèvres porcelain manufactory. Its lustrous deep blue porcelain base is Classic Sèvres in style, and it provides the perfect ba...
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Bronze
Fine Large 19th Century Fruit Encrusted Schneehallen Vase
Located in London, GB
A continental porcelain vase, entirely encrusted with various fruits and flowers on a white and heavily gilded background.
Category
Late 19th Century German Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Pair of 19th Century English Lamps
By Minton
Located in London, GB
A very elegant pair of lamps, English, probably Copeland or Minton, in the French manner, Parian ware (unglazed porcelain). The group reminds one of summer, where two figures are eat...
Category
Late 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$2,523 / set
Saucer Dish, "Milkmaids" Pattern with Double Rebus, Worcester, circa 1757
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Transfer print decoration of The Milkmaids.
The engraving carries marks for three important people, and is very rare.
The double-anchor represent the Holdship brothers, Richard...
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
Spoon Tray, Hancock's Ruins, Worcester, circa 1765
Located in Melbourne, Victoria
Of elongated hexagonal form, decorated with classical ruins, after Hancock.
Category
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Porcelain
Materials
Porcelain
$1,760 Sale Price
20% Off
Neoclassical porcelain for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a broad range of unique Neoclassical porcelain for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the Late 20th Century, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage porcelain created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include serveware, ceramics, silver and glass, decorative objects, lighting and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with ceramic, porcelain and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Neoclassical porcelain made in a specific country, there are Europe, United Kingdom, and England pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original porcelain, popular names associated with this style include Bow Porcelain, Meissen Porcelain, Chelsea Porcelain, and Minton. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for porcelain differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $45 and tops out at $316,032 while the average work can sell for $1,850.