Chelsea Porcelain

A Cut Above the Rest – Nicholas Sprimont

The Chelsea Porcelain factory, one of a handful of manufactories operating around London in the mid 18th century was the brainchild of the silversmith Nicholas Sprimont. A Huguenot from a family of silversmiths and goldsmith’s in Liège, Nicholas left to make his way in London and registered his mark as a silversmith in 1741-2 when he was just 26 years of age. His Continental roots and connections and his skill as a craftsman were clearly influential on the wares made at Chelsea. Subtle comparisons of paste can be drawn but perhaps the most obvious connections are in decorative style and form. What sets Sprimont apart from many of his contemporaries in London and around Britain? His expertise in tastefully combining the influences of other manufacturers, his high standards of quality in production and decoration, his appreciation of the latest fashions and his ability to be innovative as well as the imitative

A Mark of Distinction – Chelsea Porcelain

It is in first years of the 1750s when Chelsea began to mark pieces with an anchor, soon to become known as one of the most recognisable trade marks in English and World porcelain. Some pieces bear the anchor mark moulded on to an oval pad and applied to the ware, commonly known as the `Raised Anchor Period` by collectors it coincides with the beginning of the heyday of the factory. It is characterised by a wonderful smooth paste and a rich variety of wares and figures influence by Meissen and Vincennes porcelain and, directly or indirectly, by Japanese and blanc-de-chine porcelain.

Time for Tea

The beautifully presented tea service included in this sale is worth highlighting for several reasons. It is a rare survivor and remarkably complete for any mid-18th century English tea service. The reeded forms and the shapes of the teapot and teabowls and saucers are reminiscent of Japanese porcelain, though it is not certain if they are directly taken from the originals or from Meissen porcelain made to imitate pieces in the collection of Augustus II of Saxony and Poland. The crisply moulded scroll handle of the cream ewer is more reminiscent of a European silver prototype. The estuary scenes on each piece are directly influenced by Meissen porcelain decorated by C.F. Herold and his followers. The plain areas of the forms are painted with scattered flowers and insects in a style associated with early Vincennes wares and the delicate pink and iron-red lambrequin scroll-work on the handle and spout of the teapot give the piece a Continental feel. It is interesting to note that the pastoral scene on each teabowl and saucer share a graphic source which reinforce the fact that these pieces have always been together.

Delicate Timing

The clock case included in the sale is another rare survivor from this decade at the factory. It is one of a handful known, all of which are now in museums and private collections. It is a bold rococo design and a tour de force of decorative schemes employed at the factory. The extravagantly moulded edges and borders of the case form frames which are reserved with landscape, fruit and floral still life and fancy birds among foliage and in flight. The whole imposing form is surmounted by powerfully modelled allegorical figure group. Clock cases made entirely of porcelain are a rare from any factory in the 18th century which makes this piece particularly prized.