Figure thumbnail 1
On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Figure

ca. 1740 (made), ca. 1740-1741 (made)
Artist/Maker
Meissen Porcelain Factory (manufacturer)
Kändler, Johann Joachim (modeller)
Place of origin
Meissen (made)

In the 1740s the Meissen modeller J. J. Kaendler devised a wide range of porcelain figures for table decoration. The most popular were probably characters from the Italian Opera. This was a popular satirical travelling theatre, from which the miniature Punch and Judy developed in the 1800s. The colourful figure of Harlequin could be displayed in many postures and guises.

Object details

Categories
Ceramics
Porcelain
Figures & Decorative Ceramics
Object type
Figure
Materials and techniques
Hard-paste porcelain, painted in enamel colours and gilded
Hard Paste Porcelain
Painted
Moulded
Gilded
Brief description
Figure of Harlequin, hard-paste porcelain painted in enamels and gilt, modelled by J. J. Kaendler, ca. 1740-41, made by Meissen porcelain factory, Germany, about 1740
Physical description
Hard-paste porcelain figure of Harlequin propped against a tree stump, his face with a mischievious expression as he pulls the tail of a complaining pug dog held under his left arm as if winding the handle of a hurdy-gurdy, painted in enamel colours and gilded.
Dimensions
  • Height: 17.1cm
  • Width: 10.6cm
Marks and inscriptions
'I'

Note
Impressed on base
Credit line
Given by Mrs O. J. Finney in memory of Oswald James Finney
Subjects depicted
Commedia Dell'arte
Harlequin
Summary
In the 1740s the Meissen modeller J. J. Kaendler devised a wide range of porcelain figures for table decoration. The most popular were probably characters from the Italian Opera. This was a popular satirical travelling theatre, from which the miniature Punch and Judy developed in the 1800s. The colourful figure of Harlequin could be displayed in many postures and guises.
Bibliographic references
  • Hildyard, Robin. European Ceramics. London: V&A Publications, 1999.
  • Jansen, Reinhard, ed. Commedia Dell'Arte, Fest der Komödianten, Keramische Kostbarkeiten aus den Museen der Welt with essays by Ulrich Pietsch, Meredith Chilton, Reinhard Jansen, Samuel Wittwer etc. Catalogue of the exhibition held at Schloss Charlottenburg and the Bröhan Museum, 2001, together with separate summary in English and booklet of source prints. Stuttgart: Arnoldsche, 2001
  • Rafael, Johannes Zur "Taxa Kaendler", Keramos 203/204, 2009 pp. 25-69, including a full transcription of the 'Taxa' and parallel text in German and English. Keramos is the quarterly magazine of Ceramics Society of Düsseldorf, editor, Dr. Alfred Ziffer, January-April, Deggendorf, 2009
Collection
Ceramics Collection
Accession number
C.9-1984

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Record createdNovember 28, 2002
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O70985/figure-kändler-johann-joachim/
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