Skip to main content

Tureen and cover in the shape of a carp: C.36 & A-1932

Object information

Current Location: Gallery 26 (Lower Marlay)

Titles

Tureen and cover in the shape of a carp

Maker(s)

Factory: Chelsea Porcelain Manufactory

Entities

Categories

Description

Soft-paste porcelain tureen and cover, painted overglaze naturalistically in polychrome enamels.

Soft-paste porcelain tureen and cover, moulded in two parts, and painted overglaze in yellow, red, dark manganese, and black enamels. The lower part and cover fit together to form a carp lying on its side. The cover is surmounted by a handle in the form of an arching elver. The whole is painted naturalistically.

Notes

History note: Unknown before donor, Mrs W.D. (Frances Louisa) Dickson, Bournemouth

Legal notes

Given by Mrs W.D. Dickson

Measurements and weight

Length: 40.3 cm

Place(s) associated

  • Chelsea ⪼ Middlesex ⪼ England

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Given (1932-06-13) by Dickson, W. D. (Frances Louisa), Mrs

Dating

18th Century, Mid
George II
Red anchor period (1752-1756)
Circa 1754 CE - 1756 CE

Note

The carp, originally accompanied by a dish, was one of several zoomorphic tureens produced by the Chelsea Porcelain Factory in the mid 1750s. No Catalogue of the 1754 sale is known. The carp can be dated approximately by references to 'Two exceeding fine carps, and two find dishes to ditto' or 'Two very fine carps and two dishes to ditto;, which appear in the First, Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth,Sixth, Seventh, Ninth, Eleventh, Twelfth, Fifteenth and Sixteenth Days of the 1755 Chelsea Sale Catalogue, lots 90, 43, 59, 12, 46, 47, 66, 68, 53, 90, 73, and 79 respectively. In the Catalogue of the 1756 sale two carp with their dishes formed lot 74 on the Eighth Day,'Two fine CARP and 2 curious dishes to ditto'.

School or Style

Rococo

Components of the work

Decoration composed of enamel ( yellow, red, dark manganese, and black)
Over Cover Height 11.5 cm

Materials used in production

presumed lead-glaze Lead-glaze
Soft-paste porcelain

Techniques used in production

Moulding : Soft-paste porcelain, moulded in two parts, painted overglaze naturalistically in yellow, red, dark manganese, and blackenamels
Glazing (coating)

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: an anchor
  • Location: On interior of tureen
  • Method of creation: Painted in red enamel
  • Type: Mark
  • Text: 13
  • Location: On interior of tureen and on interior of cover
  • Method of creation: Painted in red enamel
  • Type: Mark

References and bibliographic entries

Related exhibitions

Identification numbers

Accession number: C.36 & A-1932
Primary reference Number: 131132
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Tuesday 13 October 2020 Last processed: Friday 8 December 2023

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Tureen and cover in the shape of a carp" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/131132 Accessed: 2024-11-21 13:52:41

Citation for Wikipedia

To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:

{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/131132 |title=Tureen and cover in the shape of a carp |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-21 13:52:41|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

API call for this record

To call these data via our API (remember this needs to be authenticated) you can use this code snippet:

https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/api/v1/objects/object-131132

Sign up for updates

Updates about future exhibitions and displays, family activities, virtual events & news. You'll be the first to know...