A Portrait of society from the 18th Century
Discover the fashion and objects of the time through the panel The chocolate party.
Design Museum of Barcelona
Design Museum of Barcelona
The Chocolate Party (1710) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
Francesc d'Amat i de Planella, Count of Castellar, commissioned a series of decorative ceramic panels to adorn the garden of his estate in Alella (Barcelona) in 1710.
The aim was to decorate the lunettes of the pavilion of the so-called Fountain of Health, with different representations of the activities and distractions of the nobility: a bull race, hunting, a battle, and, as is the case here, a charming party in a garden where chocolate is the main attraction.
French fashion
The La Xocolatada panel depicts 71 people dressed in the French style,
in a period when the European aristocracy imitated the tastes and lifestyle of
the French court of King Louis XIV.
No title (1715) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
Men wore a knee-length jacket and waistcoat, breeches, tie, wig and a wide-brimmed hat.
Gown (circa 1718) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
Women wore bodices with embroidery and overskirts, and decorative front panels and small aprons. They wore their hair up à la fontange, and they had a fan in their hands.
No title (c. 1700) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
No title (1724) by QuareDesign Museum of Barcelona
No title (1650-1675) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
Everyone wore silk stockings and...
No title (1650-1700) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
...heeled shoes.
No title (1650-1700) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
Customs at the table
The protocol and manners at the table also came from the French Court of Versailles, introducing changes that would then become rooted in our customs.
Allegory of Astronomy (1727-1749) by Cristobal Cros. Real Fábrica de Loza y Porcelana de l’AlcoraDesign Museum of Barcelona
The demand for highly prized Chinese porcelain and luxury tableware to adorn the tables served to adapt to the new culinary habits and resulted in a variety of new objects:
No title (1650-1700) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
No title (1727-1749) by Real Fábrica de Loza y Porcelana de l’AlcoraDesign Museum of Barcelona
Centrepieces,...
No title (1775-1799) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
...candle holders,
No title (1727-1749) by Cristobal Torres. Real Fábrica de Loza y Porcelana de l’AlcoraDesign Museum of Barcelona
...saucers (to serve glasses of water, ice-cream, cups, pastries, etc.)
No title (1550-1650) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
...and glass and metal objects such as the introduction of the three-pronged fork.
No title (18th century) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
No title (1650-1750) by UnknownDesign Museum of Barcelona
This was the beginning of gastronomy as we know it today.
Products from overseas:
chocolate
New colonial products and consumer habits from all over the world overlapped with the old customs of the nobility.
No title (1727-1760) by Real Fábrica de Loza y Porcelana de l’AlcoraDesign Museum of Barcelona
The arrival of new foods such as tea, coffee and chocolate required new containers: all the privileged houses would have teapots, coffee pots and vessels for hot chocolate.
No title (1750-1770) by Real Fábrica de Loza y Porcelana de l’AlcoraDesign Museum of Barcelona
Chocolate, from America, played a prominent role, to the point that a new object was designed to drink it: the mancerina as it was called in Spain.
No title (1727-1749) by José Calbo Perales. Real Fábrica de Loza y Porcelana de l’AlcoraDesign Museum of Barcelona
Invented in the court of the Marquis of Mancera, Viceroy of Peru, in the mid 17th century, it held the cup containing the hot chocolate, preventing it from falling off the plate.
No title (1727-1749) by Real Fábrica de Loza y Porcelana de l’AlcoraDesign Museum of Barcelona
Panel The Chocolate Party
Barcelona, 1710
Tin-glazed earthenware
122 x 386 cm. each
MCB 52.770
Legacy of Joaquim de Càrcer, marquess of Castellbell, 1923
