A fine and rare Vincennes bleu lapis-ground garniture of three flower pots and stands 1756/57

(vases 'hollandaise', 1^ère et 2^eme grandeur) with oval cartouches painted by Jean-Louis Morin with cherubs amidst clouds and various trophies representing science, the arts or love within finely tooled gilt foliate scroll and diaperwork borders issuing leafy sprays of flowers beneath a gilt dentil border on the rim, the conforming stands painted with bird and trophy vignettes alternating with blue-ground panels of gilt diaperwork, the first size vase and the second size stands with interlaced L's mark, date letter D and painter's letter M in blue.

Probably purchased by M. Bailly, December 10 and 17, 1757, for the total sum of 780 livres (by repute)
Presented by Louis, Dauphin of France, as a gift to Antoine-Charles-Guillaume, Marquis de la Roche-Aymon (by repute)
Sale: Property of Mrs. Derek Fitzgerald from the Collection of Mrs. Meyer Sassoon, Sotheby's, London, May 4, 1965, lot 80
Sale: Collection of Sir Charles Clore, Christie's, Monaco, December 6, 1985, lot 1

London, 25 Park Lane, the residence of Sir Philip Sassoon, Bart., Three French Reigns: Louis XIV, XV & XVI, Loan Exhibition in Aid of the Royal Northern Hospital, February 21-April 5, 1933

The large stand has an approximate 6-in. firing crack to the base issuing a fine haircrack at either end, approximately 2 1/2 and 1 in. respectively. The overall combination of cracks extends from the upper edge of one side, beneath the shoulder and to the right of the musical trophy panel with the tambourine, down the side (this is somewhat visible in the catalogue illustration of the reverse of the vases), diagonally along the length of the base to the midpoint of one end beneath a bird panel. Some very minor flakes to the gilding of the edge of the base. The large vase has some minor short shallow scratches to the ground and across the gilding at the top of one large panel and there is a minor small circular firing fault affecting the ground on one side just beneath the gilt dentil border of the rim. One of the small vases has several very minor tiny pitting faults to the paste, similar to that of the large vase. Apart from this, the vases and some very minor typical firing tears, the vases and stands are in generally good condition. The glaze and blue ground are even and the gilding bright.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Vases 'hollandois' in the first and second sizes first appear as early as 1754 in the factory sales records and, as the name suggests, the model was probably originally intended as a flower or bulb pot rather than a vessel for cut flower arrangements. Modelled in two parts, the upper section was meant to hold a bulb or plant growing in soil and was pierced around the base, which, in turn, fit into a stand designed as a reservoir for water. Although the model for a third size is also recorded in 1754, its production does not appear to have been started by the factory until 1758.

Numerous pairs and single examples exist, particularly of the first and second sizes, and a comprehensive discussion of the form's model, title, date of introduction and comparable examples, as well as a list of the relevant sales records for the period 1754-89, are provided by Rosalind Savill, The Wallace Collection Catalogue of Sèvres Porcelain, Volume I, pp. 69-71 and 89-90. The factory sales records for 1757 list two purchases by M. Bailly: a vase of the first size, decorated with "enfans camaïeu", for 300 livres on December 10th (Registre Vy 2, folio 42) and two of the second size, decorated "d'enfans colorés", for 240 livres each on December 17th, (Registre, Vy 2, folio 44). Given that the decoration of the Bailly purchases, as listed in the sales records, does not correspond closely enough to that of the present examples, this portion of their provenance, as cited in the Clore catalogue, appears to be highly unlikely.

A trophy panel decorating the reverse side of one of the second size vases comprising part of the present garniture includes an open book inscribed Anacreon. A cuvette à fleurs 'à tombeau' of the first size with a similar open book partially inscribed ACREO is illustrated by Savill, op. cit., pp. 34-35, C204, where the possible significance of this decoration is mentioned on p. 36. Probably inspired by the writings of the Greek philosopher-poet of the same name, Anacréon was a one-act opera-ballet by Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764) composed in collaboration with his frequent librettist, Louis de Cahusac (1706-59). It was first performed at Fontainebleau on October 23rd and 26th, 1754, and although it has been speculated that the performance was to mark the August 23rd birth of the Dauphin's second son, Louis-Auguste, duc de Berri and future Louis XVI, King of France and Navarre, it is more likely that the opera was performed as part of a festival of arts and music in conjunction with the annual arrival of the Louis XV's courtiers at the château in the autumn for several weeks of hunting and other pleasurable entertainments.

Following the deaths of his elder brother in 1761 and his father, Louis, Dauphin of France, in 1765, Louis-Auguste succeeded to the title. It was during this period that Antoine-Charles-Guillaume, Marquis de La Roche-Aymon (1751-1831), likely served as menin de "monseigneur le Dauphin", nobleman in attendance to the future King. However, despite this and the absence of any supporting archival evidence, the probability of a gift of the present garniture by either Dauphin to the Marquis, as purported in both the Fitzgerald and Clore provenances, must remain a matter of conjecture.

Sir Philip Sassoon's residence at 25 Park Lane, London, was home to a series of annual exhibitions of fine and decorative art from private collections from 1928 to 1938. Organized with the proceeds of their related exhibition catalogues going to charity, the exhibitions were popular social events, with members of the general public and nobility alike in attendance, as well as King George V and Queen Mary. The 'Three French Reigns' exhibition was no exception. "Altogether 544 items were on display from 90 lenders, including 26 from the Queen. The style Rothschild was well represented, with nine English and French Rothschilds contributing. To that could be added the 25 items from the Earl of Rosebery, whose mother was a Rothschild. Philip himself lent 50 items..." (Peter Stansky, Sassoon: The Worlds of Philip and Sybil, 2003, p. 200).

Similar vases 'hollandois' are illustrated by Savill, op. cit., pp. 73-74, C217 (a single vase of the first size); pp. 76-77, C218-19 (a pair of the third size); pp. 78-82, C220-22 (a garniture of three, first and second size); and pp. 85-87, C223-4 (a pair of the second size). Two examples are illustrated by Geoffrey de Bellaigue, French Porcelain in the Collection of her Majesty the Queen, p. 131-133, cat. no. 14, and p. 134, cat. no. 15. Others are illustrated by Linda H. Roth and Clare Le Corbeiller, French Eighteenth-Century Porcelain at the Wadsworth Atheneum, pp. 118-119, no. 63, and Svend Eriksen, The James A. Rothschild Collection at Waddesdon Manor, Sèvres Porcelain, p. 99, no. 34.

Sotheby's wishes to thank Coralie Dusserre, Documentaliste, Service des collections documentaires, Sèvres – Cité de la Céramique, for her kind assistance in the cataloguing of this lot.