A Chinese Export 'Pompadour' Pattern Plate, Qing Dynasty, Qianlong Period, circa 1745 | 清乾隆 約1745年 粉彩花卉圖盤

Royal James Gallery, Palm Beach, Florida, 1989

Examples bearing this design were once thought to have been made for Madame de Pompadour, hence the now well-known name of the pattern. Born Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson (French for 'fish' and painted in two of the cartouches on the plate), Madame de Pompadour was the famous mistress of Louis XV, who is said to be represented on the service by the eagles. However, that misconception has largely been debunked as discussed in Michel Beurdeley, Porcelain of the East India Companies, London, 1962, cat. no. 190, and David Howard and John Ayers, China for the West, Vol. II, London, 1978, cat. no. 449. An identical example from a distinguished American collection was sold in these rooms, February 2nd, 2019, lot 827.