Pr. Finely Executed Ornithological & Neoclassical Decorated Meissen Ewers 19th C

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A rare and exceptionally elaborate pair of Meissen porcelain ewers, dating to the mid-19th century, executed in a richly sculptural … Read more A rare and exceptionally elaborate pair of Meissen porcelain ewers, dating to the mid-19th century, executed in a richly sculptural Rococo Revival idiom, each marked beneath with the underglaze blue crossed swords and modeled in the round with an extraordinary degree of detail and polychrome enamel work. The baluster-form bodies are adorned with finely painted reserves of songbirds and botanical specimens in the 18th-century Meissen style, framed within raised gilt cartouches against a celadon-tinted ground. The upper portion of each vessel is encircled by four bust-length female figures in high relief, their coiffed heads emerging in the round from the shoulder of the vase—an echo of early German figural vessels, yet here rendered with a neoclassical softness of modeling that reflects the mid-century taste.

Each ewer is surmounted by a dramatically formed spout in the shape of a roaring lion’s or dragon’s head, gilded and stylized with curling mane, while the handle takes the form of a coiling serpent or fantastical beast with plum-colored scale-textured body that extends in looping tendrils. The necks of the ewers are paneled and enriched with vertical gilt ribbing, above a ring of applied cabochon jewels in red and green enamel, emulating rubies and emeralds, adding to the sumptuous, almost theatrical effect of the overall composition.

The ewers rest on scrolled, triform bases with Rococo gilt acanthus and grapevine ornamentation—each foot molded with clusters of grapes and leaves in raised relief and picked out in matte and burnished gilding. The applied and reticulated feet suggest a clear lineage from earlier Meissen baroque examples, yet the scale and exuberance of these pieces firmly places them within the high 19th-century revival of such forms. Structurally, the works are affixed with bolts through the base, consistent with presentation or garniture pieces intended for prominent display, possibly on a mantel or central cabinet.

Likely produced under the direction of Ernst August Leuteritz, head of modeling at Meissen from 1849, these works reflect both the technical virtuosity and the ornamental extravagance characteristic of the manufactory's output during the period of renewed historicism. They are exceptional survivals in pristine condition, representative of the apex of Meissen’s 19th-century sculptural porcelain production and rivaling the great vases and garnitures of the Sevres revival in ambition and execution.

Measures: 14" h x 4.25" w x 5" d. See less