A CHINESE EXPORT 'WILKES' PUNCH BOWL circa 1765

painted en grisaille on the front with a portrait of John Wilkes supporting a pole surmounted by a liberty cap and seated beside a table with an inkstand and two manuscripts: Numbers 17 and 45 of the North Briton, on the reverse with three men forcing another to drink from a bowl, on one side with boats sailing near a crenellated building, and on the other with buildings on the banks of a river, both between pairs of fruit- and leaf-shaped panels painted with flowers or fruit, and all reserved on a gilt filigree ground, the interior rim with an iron-red and gilt spearhead border.  Some restored chips.

Sold, Sotheby's, Monte Carlo, February 13, 1983, lot 267
Fred Nadler, New York

Some wear to gilt scrollwork ground, some wear to the grisaille on the drinking panel, central decoration on interior completely worn, some pits in glaze on interior center, 12 shallow restored chips mostly on the outer edge.
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.

Both sides of a similarly decorated punch bowl are illustrated by Howard and Ayers, Vol. I, pp. 244 and 245, nos. 240 and 240a, who comment that of the two contemporary prints by William Hogarth (1697-1764) reproduced faithfully on this bowl, "the more famous [illustrated on p. 244, no. 240b] is the first edition of Hogarth's engraving of [the cross-eyed] John Wilkes Esqr." (1727-97), published on May 16^th, 1763 after the political firebrand's arrest for his seditious attack on George III in issue Number 45 of his publication, The North Briton, challenging, according to Lars Tharp, Hogarth's China: Hogarth's Paintings and Eighteenth-Century Ceramics (London, 1997), p. 106, "the veracity of the King's recent speech in declaring the latest peace treaty with France to be in the public's interest....  Wilkes, Member of Parliament for Aylesbury, was summoned before the Court of Common Pleas [and was imprisoned by Parliament], an action which was subsequently declared illegal by the Court."  Throughout the public spectacle, Wilkes only gained popularity for defending his right to free speech.  But while Hogarth and Wilkes had been friends, Hogarth's rather unflattering depiction of Wilkes at court in this engraving suggests that Hogarth did not agree with Wilkes' position nor condone his behavior.  Hogarth's print "was an instant success and prompted anti-Hogarthian engravings from supporters of Wilkes" (ibid.).

The scene on the reverse of the bowl is taken from an engraving by Charles Maucourt (1728-68) entitled 'The Queen's Arms, a Night's Amusement,' published on August 13^th, 1764, and also illustrated by Howard and Ayers, Vol. I, p. 245, no. 240c, where the authors comment that "there is no clear connection between the two prints except that [this "boisterous" view] typified the life with which Wilkes was familiar and was a suitable 'other side' of the character of the man so eloquently defending liberty."

Krahl and Harrison-Hall, pp. 94 and 95, no. 38 and figs. 38a and b, also illustrate both sides of a similarly decorated punch bowl and both of its source prints.  Hervouët and Bruneau, p. 211, no. 9.53 a, b, likewise illustrate both sides of the 'Wilkes' punch bowl sold at Sotheby's in London on November 14, 1978, lot 244, and subsequently in the collection of François Hervouët, sold again in those rooms on November 3, 1987, lot 845; and they further illustrate on p. 255, no. 10.47 an example of one of the side panels, which they suggest is the fort of Tranquebar (Dansborg), established by the Danish East India Company in the Nagapattinam district of the Tranquebar coast of India.  The same punch bowl and the Hogarth print of Wilkes are illustrated by Tharp, p. 107, fig. 92 and p. 106, fig. 91, respectively, who emphasizes Wilkes's appeal to the American market for his support of the cause that sparked the War of Independence (1775-83).  Details of both sides of a similar bowl are illustrated by Palmer, pp. 84 and 85, figs. 48b and 49a, who on p. 85 quotes the London Chronicle's description of the print showing Wilkes with the liberty cap "poised over his head like a self-appointed halo, in ironic contrast to the truly diabolic squinting leer and the impression of horns created by his wig."

While this bowl and its counterparts were commissioned probably by or for a critic of John Wilkes, his likeness from Hogarth's and other engravings appeared on a variety of Chinese export porcelain and English ceramics that celebrated his views on liberty.  An English Delft plate and a Staffordshire creamware teapot, both from the mid-1760s with Wilkes' portrait, and a Staffordshire pearlware figure of Wilkes, circa 1795-1800, are illustrated by Tharp, op. cit., p. 107, fig. 93, and p. 108, figs. 94 and 95, respectively.