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Provençal Fife and Drum Player from the Cries de Paris
Factory:
Meissen Porcelain Factory
Modeller:
Reinicke, Peter
Artist:
Bouchardon, Edme
(After)
Engraver:
Caylus, Anne Claude Philippe,
Hard-paste porcelain painted in green, yellow, flesh pink, a little red, brown, and black enamels, and gilt.
Hard-paste porcelain, press-moulded, and painted overglaze in green, yellow, flesh pink, a little red, beige, brown, and black enamels, and gilt. The underside of the base is unglazed, and has had the ventilation hole and two firing cracks filled with a brown substance. The low, irregular four-sided base has a tall tree stump at the back and is decorated with applied leaves and a yellow and a red and white rose at the front. The musician stands on his right leg with his left extended in front. In his left hand he holds a large brown pipe to his lips. In his right hand he holds a brown drum-stick with which he plays on a monstrous white drum decorated with pale brown rope trimmings. The base of the drum rests on the tree-stump, and it is supported by a beige strap which hangs over his left arm. The drummer has thick curly grey hair hanging down to his shoulders. He wears a black three-cornered hat with a gold stud on its left side, a white shirt with ruffles at the wrists, a long white coat with gold buttons; pale yellow breeches with gold bands at the knees; white stockings, and black shoes with gold buckles.
History note: Purchased by the 2nd Lord Fisher on 23 July 1933 from Willy Lissauer, Berlin for £36
Given by Lord and Lady Fisher through the National Art Collections Fund
Height: 19.5 cm
Width: 12.2 cm
Method of acquisition: Given (1954-01-14) by Fisher, Lord and Lady
18th Century, Mid
Production date:
circa
AD 1747
Anne Claude Philippe Caylus (1692-1765)This figure is one of the first series of Meissen Cries of Paris. It was modelled about 1747 after 'Le Provençal', plate 9 of the fourth set of Études prises dans le bas Peuple ou les Cris de Paris, engraved by the comte de Caylus (1692-1765) after drawings by Edme Bouchardon (1689-1762), published in 1742. The posture of the figure differs from the drawing because it was necessary for it to be supported by the tree stump behind it. The musician's weight is therefore on his right leg with his left extended in front of him, whereas in the drawing the man stands with his weight on both feet.
Decoration
composed of
enamel
( green, yellow, flesh pink, a little red, brown, black)
gold
Base
Depth 6.5 cm
Press-moulding
: Hard-paste porcelain, press-moulded in parts, assembled, glazed, painted in enamels, and gilt
Glazing (coating)
Accession number: C.32-1954
Primary reference Number: 131044
Old catalogue number: 391
Stable URI
Owner or interested party:
The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department:
Applied Arts
This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:
The Fitzwilliam Museum (2025) "Provençal Fife and Drum Player from the Cries de Paris" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/131044 Accessed: 2025-04-15 19:34:43
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{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/131044
|title=Provençal Fife and Drum Player from the Cries de Paris
|author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2025-04-15 19:34:43|publisher=The
University of Cambridge}}
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<div class="text-center"> <figure class="figure"> <img src="https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/imagestore/portfolio/F25982D9_7CB9_CFFF_028E_8BBFC531887C/689/55/large_C_32_1954_C_27_1954_T_2111_mas_legacy.jpg" alt="Provençal Fife and Drum Player from the Cries de Paris" class="img-fluid" /> <figcaption class="figure-caption text-info">Provençal Fife and Drum Player from the Cries de Paris</figcaption> </figure> </div>
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