A Pair of Red Meissen Porcelain Potpourri Vases w 4 Mythological Painted scenes

Description

A Rare and Quite Sought After Pair of Red Meissen Porcelain Double Handled Potpourri Vases with Four Hand painted Mythological Panels. Both vases are marked on the underside with the Meissen crossed swords in underglaze blue, accompanied by incised model numbers. Each vase is constructed in porcelain and follows a neoclassical form, with elongated ovoid bodies, flared shoulders, and domed, reticulated lids. The vases rest on square plinths with stepped bases covered in a uniform rose-cranberry glaze. Molded gilt oak leaf garlands encircle the lower foot and upper shoulder of each vase. The twin handles are constructed from white-glazed porcelain with parcel-gilt highlights and feature a sharply angular outline with a raised acanthus spine. The pierced covers are decorated with elliptical openings bordered by applied gilt rosettes and topped with fixed laurel wreath finials. The bodies of the vases are decorated with large hand-painted figural reserves on both the front and reverse. Each oval panel is framed in raised and tooled gilding composed of foliate scrolls and floral motifs. The first vase features a depiction of a semi-nude female figure seated on a garlanded bull moving through water, accompanied by two putti—one hovering with wings and the other swimming alongside—likely representing the classical myth of Europa. The reverse side depicts Venus seated among clouds and mountainous terrain, holding a golden arrow with a winged Cupid leaning against her lap. A pair of doves rest beside her, completing a composition emblematic of Venus’s iconography in celestial or allegorical settings. The second vase presents a figural scene depicting Venus and Mars. Venus is shown nude and standing, leaning toward a seated Mars who holds a staff and wears a blue drape over his lap. Two winged putti attend the figures, one at Venus’s feet and another beside Mars. The setting includes a green curtain, a fluted column, and architectural elements suggestive of a classical terrace. The reverse panel of the second vase features a group of three female bathers near a fountain. One figure sits nude at the edge of a stone basin, partially wrapped in a white cloth; another stands behind adjusting her drapery; while the third, facing away, sits with her legs in the water. The background includes dense foliage and distant hills, forming a secluded natural setting often used for bath scenes in mythological or allegorical contexts. Each figural reserve is painted in polychrome enamels, using a palette typical of Meissen’s revivalist production of the 19th century. The painters employed delicate tonal gradients to model flesh, fabrics, and sky, as well as detailed linework in the faces and accessories. The scenes were likely derived from 18th-century French engravings after François Boucher, Charles-Joseph Natoire, or related artists, as was common in Meissen’s mythological wares. The overall ground color is a deep, even rose-cranberry glaze, which was applied over the entire surface apart from the reserves and then overlaid with parcel-gilt details. This monochrome ground was widely used by Meissen in the latter part of the 1800s and required careful application and high-temperature firing. The pierced lids are integral to the function of the form, which was designed to hold scented materials while allowing perfumed air to diffuse through the openwork. The wreath finials are formed separately and applied post-firing, then fully gilded. All mounts and applied elements—including the oak garlands, flower heads, and raised gold cartouches—were executed as part of the original design and show no signs of restoration or overpainting. The crossed swords mark in underglaze blue appears on both vases. The shape, proportion, and decoration of this pair place them within Meissen’s tradition of revivalist classical forms, popular during the late 19th century when the manufactory catered to elite collectors across Europe and America. The combination of large scale, double-sided figural panels, pierced lids, and applied gilded decoration reflects a production intended for prominent interior display. Germany, Circa: 1880

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