A Berlin (K.P.M.) porcelain trompe l'oeil tea and coffee service, circa 1823-1832

This spectacular service is a tour-de-force in porcelain painting and is in the highest standard of production. 'En mosaique' decoration was held in such high regard that it attracted Royal favour. For example, an order from Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia was placed on 20th January 1818 for a six-part déjeuner, 'Gemalt mit Vögel en mosaique in erh{abenen} Gold eingef{aßten} Schildern auch Vaschen in florent{iner} mos{aik} in blauen Schildern nebst mehrerer reicher Vergoldung, innerh{alb} die Becher auch Saanekanne Glanzgoldfond.', ["decorated with birds en mosaique in raised gold framed shields, also vases in Florentine mosaic in blue shields as well as much rich gilding, inside the beakers and cream jug also brilliant gold ground," in Dr. Samuel Wittwer, Refinement and Elegance: Early Nineteenth-Century Royal Porcelain from the Twinight Collection, New York, 2007, p. 190.]

Interestingly, some of the simulated micromosaic scenes which appear on this service seem to be based on engravings in the two-volume work by the publishers J. Mérigot and R. Edwards, A select collection of views and ruins in Rome and its vicinity : recently executed from drawings made upon the spot. A publication was released in London in 1815 though the plates date to between 1796-1798. An example is still preserved today in the K.P.M archive. 

A similar set from the collection of Princess Alexis Dolgorouki (1850-1919) at Nashdom House, Burnham, Buckinghamshire was sold at Sotheby's, London, 17 January 2018, lot 65 (£47,500).