Figure Group thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Ceramics, Room 145

Figure Group

ca. 1766 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Karl Eugen, duke of Württtemburg lived in regal style modelled on the court of Louis XV. Together with the fashionable pursuits of opera, ballet and hunting, he was passionate about porcelain and therefore founded his own porcelain factory at Ludwigsburg by ducal decree in 1758. A number of accomplished sculptors worked at the factory, among them Joseph Anton Weinmüller, who is recorded there for only a short time from 1765-67. During that time his greatest achievement was a series of large Chinese figure groups, of which this is one.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Hard-paste porcelain, painted in enamels and gilded
Brief description
Chinoiserie figure group in hard-paste porcelain comprising a Mandarin with an attendant small boy painted in enamels and gilded, made by the Ludwigsburg porcelain factory, Germany, ca. 1766.
Physical description
Chinoiserie figure group in hard-paste porcelain comprising a Mandarin figure, standing wearing flowing robes and a pointed hat, a small boy attendant stands slightly behind on his right, a vase overflowing with flowers to his left, all on a low rocky base, richly painted with colourful patterns and gilded.
Style
Marks and inscriptions
incised 'FNS' monogram
Subjects depicted
Summary
Karl Eugen, duke of Württtemburg lived in regal style modelled on the court of Louis XV. Together with the fashionable pursuits of opera, ballet and hunting, he was passionate about porcelain and therefore founded his own porcelain factory at Ludwigsburg by ducal decree in 1758. A number of accomplished sculptors worked at the factory, among them Joseph Anton Weinmüller, who is recorded there for only a short time from 1765-67. During that time his greatest achievement was a series of large Chinese figure groups, of which this is one.
Associated object
C.738-1923 (Series)
Bibliographic references
  • Flach, Hans Dieter. Ludwigsburger PorzellanStuttgart: Arnoldsche, 1997. ISBN 3925369309
  • Pauls-Eisenbeiss, Dr. Erika. German Porcelain of the 18th Century. London: Barrie and Jenkins, 1972. Catalogue of the Pauls-Eisenbeiss Collection, Riehen, Switzerland, Vol. II
  • Christina H. Nelson with Letitia Roberts. The Warda Stevens Stout Collection, A History of Eighteenth-Century German Porcelain. The Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis, Hudson Hills Press, Easthampton and New York, 2013. Illustrated Ludwigsburg section, fig. 5a, 339p.
Collection
Accession number
C.739-1923

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Record createdMarch 12, 2009
Record URL
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