A rare group of three cups and saucers decorated in grisaille with shipyard scenes.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION :

This group comes from a service that is possibly the only one known with this decoration. It was very probably commissioned for the Dutch market. A difference in decoration can be observed between these three sets belonging to the same service. It is unusual for a single commission to display such a notable variation. These three cups and saucers nevertheless depict scenes belonging to the same thematic register.

The saucer illustrated in Hervouët’s publication is described by the author as potentially unique, according to his classification. Although this hypothesis is in fact disproved by the group presented here, it nevertheless remains possible that this service was commissioned for a single patron. The decoration is, however, very similar, with five ships, including one flying an identifiable Dutch flag, surrounding a central medallion decorated with figures playing cards in a tavern.

Furthermore, the example illustrated by Hervouët, from the collection of the Zeeuws Museum in Middelburg, is accompanied by its bowl, which is not illustrated in Hervouët’s publication.

The exact source of these compositions has not been identified. The repeated presence of ships flying the Dutch flag, scenes of shipbuilding, and figures associated with port activities nevertheless suggests a commission closely connected with the Dutch maritime world. The variety of scenes within the same group may indicate the involvement of a patron who supplied several different models, possibly from Canton. In the absence of documentation identifying either the patron or the graphic sources used, however, this hypothesis must remain open.

The first set depicts, on the saucer, a ship flying the Dutch flag within a central medallion. The lower part of the main decoration shows a hunter preparing to shoot at a bird, while to the left appears a second ship flying the Dutch flag. A harbour village extends across the background. The same decoration is repeated on the cup, the interior of which also features the central medallion depicting the ship. The border is decorated with a diaper pattern.

The second set depicts, within a central medallion, a horn player standing on a chequered floor. The lower part of the decoration is devoted to a shipyard scene, while to the left can be seen a ship flying the Dutch flag and, in the upper section, another vessel sailing out to sea. The decoration is repeated on the cup, with the scene from the central medallion once again reproduced on the interior.

The third set features a composition relatively close to that of the first, with a Dutch ship depicted in the central medallion, sailing away from the harbour. The lower part of the decoration depicts three figures: two smoking pipes and a third who appears to be preparing to shoot. On either side of the central medallion are two further ships, also flying the Dutch flag.

Unlike the first two sets, the decoration on the cup is different here. While a man is once again depicted smoking a pipe, four other figures appear in a scene of labour that seems, once again, to evoke a shipyard. One of them is seated on a long piece of timber, probably the keel of the ship or an element of the planking, while another appears to be cutting wood with an axe. A third figure stands near a circular element that could correspond to a rudder, a capstan, or perhaps a tool used in a shipyard. Finally, a fourth figure is crouching beside a stele.

We would like to thank William Motley for discussing this decoration with us.

BIBLIOGRAPHY :

For a smilar cup and saucer, see:

– Zeuuws Museum, Netherlands, no. AB1153-01/02

For a saucer with similar decoration, see:

– La porcelaine des Compagnies des Indes à décor occidental, F. et N. Hervouët, Y. Bruneau, 1986, p. 51, fig. 2.44.

PROVENANCE :

– Private european collection

SOLD