Tureen

This bowl was made in the second porcelain factory to be founded in Europe – that of Claudius Innocentius Du Paquier (c. 1679-1751) in Vienna – for the imperial and royal court. It is a piece from the hunting tableware set of Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI [Charles III of Hungary, ruled 1700-1740]. It is known to have still been in use during the time of Maria Theresa, because additions were made to it several times between 1744 and 1755. The original Du Paquier pieces were unmarked, but on the extra pieces, the blue heraldic shieldshaped mark of the Vienna porcelain factory – a state-owned operation after 1744 -was applied under the glaze. According to tradition, Maria Theresa later donated the set to the Benedictine monastery of Sankt Blasius in the Black Forest. When the order was secularised in 1781, the resettled monks took the valuable porcelain to Sankt Paul im Lavantal in Carinthia and later auctioned them off. These pieces were ultimately acquired by Budapest art collector Emil Delmar (1876-1959). The splendid bowl, richly adorned with painting influenced by etchings, is a rarity even among Du Paquier porcelain. The side and the area around the lid handles displays one of the favourite ornaments of Baroque-Rococo porcelain art, the shell-motif version of the leaf and ribbon ornament. The images on the sides and lids of the bowls are of animals, some real, drawn true to life, and some exotic products of the imagination. The pictures are based on the engravings of Johann Elias Ridinger (1698-1767). A feature of early European porcelain is that faults in manufacture were corrected by painting: the factory defects were covered up by graceful branches, tiny flowers and soaring birds.