Flask and Cover
ca. 1715 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This spouted flask is made of the earliest porcelain developed by the alchemist Johann Friedrich Böttger at Meissen. Böttger laboured tirelessly to perfect his recipe for 'white gold' (as porcelain was often referred to at the time), living as a virtual prisoner in the Albrechtsburg castle, closely watched by the agents of his patron, Augustus the Strong, King of Saxony. Eventually, in about 1713, his experiments were successful. The shapes of his early pieces were designed by the court goldsmith, Irminger, or were copied from Asian ceramics, as in this case. This flask, or kendi shape, was originally an Islamic form of water-pouring vessel which later became popular in South-East Asia.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
|
| Materials and techniques | Hard-paste porcelain |
| Brief description | Spouted flask and cover kendi of Japanese form, hard-paste white porcelain, made at the Meissen porcelain factory, Meissen, ca. 1715. |
| Physical description | Bottle and cover Kendi as a spouted flask of Japanese form, in hard-paste white Böttger porcelain. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | From the Arthur and Hilde Weiner Collection. Accepted by HM Government in lieu of inheritance tax and allocated to the V&A, 2006 |
| Object history | Formerly in the Arthur and Hilde Weiner Collection. |
| Summary | This spouted flask is made of the earliest porcelain developed by the alchemist Johann Friedrich Böttger at Meissen. Böttger laboured tirelessly to perfect his recipe for 'white gold' (as porcelain was often referred to at the time), living as a virtual prisoner in the Albrechtsburg castle, closely watched by the agents of his patron, Augustus the Strong, King of Saxony. Eventually, in about 1713, his experiments were successful. The shapes of his early pieces were designed by the court goldsmith, Irminger, or were copied from Asian ceramics, as in this case. This flask, or kendi shape, was originally an Islamic form of water-pouring vessel which later became popular in South-East Asia. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | C.33:1, 2-2006 |
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| Record created | February 26, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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