Darte Aîné Manufactory

The four wall-mounted display cases on the wall retain part (103 pieces) of the original two sets of porcelain tableware, the work of the Parisian manufacturer Darte Aîné (1805-1823). The pieces are decorated with birds, fruit and butterflies.
The original service consisted of two sets of pieces: one decorated with exotic birds taken from the Histoire Naturelle by Louis de Buffon; the other one, consisting of pieces reserved for dessert, decorated with various fruit compositions and little insects as a joke for the guests.
According to family lore, the service was donated by Napoleon III to Francesco Miniscalchi (1811-1875), since as Vice-president of the Italian Geographical Society, he attended the inauguration of the Suez Canal in 1869; and it was on that very occasion that he met the French ruler.