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Gobelet litron et soucoupe
Factory:
Sèvres Porcelain Manufactory
Micaud, Jacques-François
Gilder:
Noël, Guillaume
Soft-paste porcelain cup and saucer, with a bleu nouveau ground, painted in enamels with a basket of flowers in reserve, and gilded.
Soft-paste porcelain decorated with a bleu nouveau or beau bleu ground, painting in green, pale blue, yellow, pale and dark pink, orange, mauve, and brown enamels, and gilding. Cylindrical cup with double-curved handle, the upper part of the back of which is decorated with small knobs. Circular saucer with flat central area and deep, sloping sides. There is a suspension hole in the footring of both pieces. The cup has a bleu nouveau ground with an approximately oval reserve framed by a wide chased gilt band and painted in polychrome with a basket of flowers standing on a marble table. The ground is decorated with two oval wreaths of gilt flowers and leaves enclosed in oval scrolled frames linked to each other and to the reserve by projecting scrolls. There is a gilt band round the foot, and round the rim, a wide undulating gilt band, dentilated on the interior. The handle is entirely gilt. The centre of the saucer is painted in polychrome with a tall basket of flowers, with a bow of pink ribbon on its handle. Two roses and a yellow flower lie beside the basket, which stands on a marble table. The sides have a bleu nouveau ground decorated with six circular wreaths of gilt flowers and leaves enclosed in scrolled frames linked by projecting scrolls with pendant husks at the junctions. There is a wide, chased gilt band round the lower edge of the sides and a wide, undulating gilt band round the rim, dentilated on the exterior.
History note: Possibly Henry Thomas Foley (1850-1905), 5th Baron Foley, Ruxley Lodge, Surrey; or his successor Fitzalan Charles John Foley (1852-1918) also of Ruxley Lodge; probably sold Castiglione & Scott, 14 October 1919, Catalogue of the vary rare and magnificent collection of Heirlooms and Objets d’Art.Very fine specimens of high-class furniture, etc., of the Louis Seize, Chippendale, and other periods; valuable services of Sèvres, Crown Derby, Dresden, Oriental and other Choice China and Porcelain . . . sold by order of the Right Honourable Gerald Henry Brian Foley, Ruxley Lodge, Claygate, Surrey, lot . Louis C.G. Clarke, MA, Cambridge before 1948
L.C.G. Clarke Bequest, 1960
Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1961-04-27) by Clarke, Louis Colville Gray
18th Century, third quarter#
Louis XVI
Production date:
AD 1774
: date letter for 1774
Bleu nouveau was an overglaze ground colour in use from 1768 to 1771. It was either renamed or replaced by beau bleu from 1768 (see Documentation, Savill, 1988, vol. III)
The gobelet litron was named after a cubic measure, the litron, which was normally made of wood, and was used for dry stuffs, such as corn and peas. Its size in Paris had been defined in 1670 as the equivalent of 9.45 cm high and 10.15 cm in diameter in pouces and lignes, which was larger than the largest of the porcelain cups. The first size of gobelet litron had been introduced at Vincennes before October 1752 when it was mentioned in an inventory of stock, but was probably being made earlier (records are lacking).The second and third sizes followed in 1753, and the fourth and fifth in 1757. They could be fitted with one of seven different handle forms . A drawing in the archives at Sèvres is dated 19 February 1753 (MNS, R1, liasse 2, dossier 2, No. 6bis) They were supplied singly, singly with a plateau carré, in ’harlequin’ sets, or as part of matching dejeuner. (See Documentation, Préaux 1991, Bellaigue 2009, Savill, 1988) This is a gobelet litron of the second size, with Savill's handle D. A richly decorated cup and saucer like this might have been purchased as an ornament rather than for use.
When purchased by L.C.G. Clarke Clarke, the x mark was interpreted as that of Jean-Charles Grison l’ainé, whose mark resembles back to back Cs, and was working 1772-74. (Peters, 2005, vol. I, p.47.) but seems more like to be the mark of Micaud, who was mainly a flower-painter. Noël was identified as the painter, whereas in this instance he was probably the gilder.
Decoration
composed of
ground colour
( bleu nouveau or beau bleu)
enamels
( green, pale blue, yellow, pale and dark pink, orange, mauve, and brown)
gold
Saucer
Diameter 14.0 cm
Height 6.9 cm
Cup Rim
Diameter 6.7 cm
Cup
Height 6.8 cm
Cup With Handle
Width 9.2 cm
Ground
presumed
Lead-glaze
Soft-paste porcelain
Lead-glazing : Soft-paste porcelain with lead-glaze (presumed), decorated with an overglaze bleu nouveau or beau bleu ground painted in polychrome enamels in the reserves, and gilding
Inscription present: interlaced L's enclosing V
Inscription present: the X is now obscured by a label
Inscription present: a horizontal line, and a line above with an arch in the middle
Inscription present: in script letters
Inscription present: in script
Inscription present: large circular paper label with a red circle near the edge
Inscription present: rectangular paper label wtih rounded corners
Accession number: C.48 & A-1961
Primary reference Number: 75238
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:
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The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Gobelet litron et soucoupe" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/75238 Accessed: 2024-11-24 18:15:30
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{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/75238
|title=Gobelet litron et soucoupe
|author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-24 18:15:30|publisher=The
University of Cambridge}}
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<figcaption class="figure-caption text-info">Gobelet litron et soucoupe</figcaption>
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