Tureen-on-stand, c.1775 (porcelain, enamel & gilt)

This tureen on a stand was modeled after a European prototype. Although the actual model sent to China could have been made of pottery, wax, wood, or pewter, the ultimate inspiration was likely a French silver tureen in the late rococo taste. During the third quarter of the 18th century, French silversmiths produced many tureens featuring elaborate finials, handles, and feet. The fluted top and sides are also suggestive of metal examples in the emerging neoclassical taste. A date of 1775 for the manufacture of this porcelain example is indicated by the fact that a tureen of the same form was part of the Royal Swedish Gripsholm Service given in 1775 to King Gustav III by the Swedish East India Company. Even though tureens of this model must have been expensive because of the large amount of labor required to produce porcelain of such complexity, they were popular among Europe’s wealthy, and examples with various decorative schemes are known. The Dallas version features neoclassical-style garlands and sprigs of flowers similar to painting found on contemporary French porcelain made at the Sèvres factory, but the masks on the scrolled handles relate more closely to earlier work done at Meissen, Germany.