Ewer
ca. 1730-1740 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This ewer was originally paired with a basin, and used for washing, either in the dining room or in the bed chamber. Before the widespread use of forks, hand washing was an important ritual in fine dining when hands came into direct contact with food.
Its shape may have been copied from a silver prototype made in France, Germany or Portugal. Another suggestioin is that the original bi-part body shape derived from a valuable material such as carved rock crystal or shell, mounted in precious metal.
Its shape may have been copied from a silver prototype made in France, Germany or Portugal. Another suggestioin is that the original bi-part body shape derived from a valuable material such as carved rock crystal or shell, mounted in precious metal.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Porcelain painted in polychrome overglaze enamels |
| Brief description | Porcelain ewer painted with flowers and insects, Jingdezhen, China, ca. 1730-40 |
| Physical description | Porcelain ewer with wide mouth and long handle, painted with flowers and insects in overglaze polychrome enamels and gold |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Object history | Purchased from the Bond Collection, accessioned in 1875. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Asia Department registers, as part of a 2022 provenance research project. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This ewer was originally paired with a basin, and used for washing, either in the dining room or in the bed chamber. Before the widespread use of forks, hand washing was an important ritual in fine dining when hands came into direct contact with food. Its shape may have been copied from a silver prototype made in France, Germany or Portugal. Another suggestioin is that the original bi-part body shape derived from a valuable material such as carved rock crystal or shell, mounted in precious metal. |
| Bibliographic reference | Kerr, Rose and Luisa E. Mengoni Chinese Export Ceramics London: V&A Publishing, 2011, p.36, pl.39
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | 499-1875 |
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| Record created | June 25, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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