Tureen
ca. 1756 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Object Type
The tureen was probably for serving stewed fruit or other sweet foodstuffs during the dessert course. Other similar Chelsea tureens are known from factory sale catalogues to have been used for the dessert, and some of these match the 'English China ... Melons and Leaves for a Dessert of Fruit and Cream, or the like' that Benjamin Franklin sent his wife in 1758. The dessert was the final stage of a grand dinner, and during the 18th century it was the course on which the greatest effort and expense was lavished. Dessert wares of fine porcelain were costly and fragile, and they satisfied the same taste for artifice and luxury as the fruit and confectionery they were made to serve. Being hygienic and odour-free, ceramics were favoured above silver and other metals for serving the dessert. The tureen would have originally had a stand.
Marketing
Similar tureens were included in the Chelsea porcelain factory's auctions held in London in the mid-1750s. The London sale of 1756 included several pairs of 'fine bundles of asparagus and plates'.
Design & Designing
Ceramic vessels naturalistically modelled and painted as vegetables and animals were very fashionable in mid-18th century Europe. The fashion probably originated in France or Germany and was soon taken up in England.
The tureen was probably for serving stewed fruit or other sweet foodstuffs during the dessert course. Other similar Chelsea tureens are known from factory sale catalogues to have been used for the dessert, and some of these match the 'English China ... Melons and Leaves for a Dessert of Fruit and Cream, or the like' that Benjamin Franklin sent his wife in 1758. The dessert was the final stage of a grand dinner, and during the 18th century it was the course on which the greatest effort and expense was lavished. Dessert wares of fine porcelain were costly and fragile, and they satisfied the same taste for artifice and luxury as the fruit and confectionery they were made to serve. Being hygienic and odour-free, ceramics were favoured above silver and other metals for serving the dessert. The tureen would have originally had a stand.
Marketing
Similar tureens were included in the Chelsea porcelain factory's auctions held in London in the mid-1750s. The London sale of 1756 included several pairs of 'fine bundles of asparagus and plates'.
Design & Designing
Ceramic vessels naturalistically modelled and painted as vegetables and animals were very fashionable in mid-18th century Europe. The fashion probably originated in France or Germany and was soon taken up in England.
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Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Parts | This object consists of 2 parts.
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| Materials and techniques | Soft-paste porcelain, painted in enamels |
| Brief description | Box and cover, in the form of a bundle of asparagus, porcelain, painted in colours, made at the Chelsea porcelain factory, ca. 1756 C |
| Physical description | Box and cover, in the form of a bundle of asparagus, porcelain, painted in colours. Asparagus moulded and coloured after nature in purple and green, bound with a brown ribbon. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Gallery label |
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| Credit line | Bequeathed by Mr Arthur Hurst |
| Object history | Made at the Chelsea porcelain factory, London |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | Object Type The tureen was probably for serving stewed fruit or other sweet foodstuffs during the dessert course. Other similar Chelsea tureens are known from factory sale catalogues to have been used for the dessert, and some of these match the 'English China ... Melons and Leaves for a Dessert of Fruit and Cream, or the like' that Benjamin Franklin sent his wife in 1758. The dessert was the final stage of a grand dinner, and during the 18th century it was the course on which the greatest effort and expense was lavished. Dessert wares of fine porcelain were costly and fragile, and they satisfied the same taste for artifice and luxury as the fruit and confectionery they were made to serve. Being hygienic and odour-free, ceramics were favoured above silver and other metals for serving the dessert. The tureen would have originally had a stand. Marketing Similar tureens were included in the Chelsea porcelain factory's auctions held in London in the mid-1750s. The London sale of 1756 included several pairs of 'fine bundles of asparagus and plates'. Design & Designing Ceramic vessels naturalistically modelled and painted as vegetables and animals were very fashionable in mid-18th century Europe. The fashion probably originated in France or Germany and was soon taken up in England. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | C.176&A-1940 |
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| Record created | March 27, 2003 |
| Record URL |
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