A Paris Biscuit Porcelain Gilt & Green-Ground Figural Reticulated Centerpiece

Description

A 19th Century Paris Biscuit Porcelain Gilt & Green-Ground Figural Reticulated Centerpiece. The piece features four kneeling winged female figures modeled in unglazed white biscuit porcelain, each holding a laurel wreath and forming the structural support for the upper basket. The figures rest upon a circular porcelain platform and are positioned symmetrically, forming a cross-shaped configuration. The basket above is made of pierced white porcelain with a gilt rim and decorative banding featuring acanthus leaf motifs. The base is raised on three gilt paw feet and exhibits an impressed mark beneath. The centerpiece is composed of several vertically stacked sections. The wide reticulated basket at the top has an upward-flaring shape with evenly spaced vertical slits bordered by gilt ribs and a scalloped gilt edge. The pierced upper band is mounted over a gilt frieze of alternating classical foliage and anthemia. The three biscuit porcelain figures are winged and elaborately modeled with individual feathers on the wings, braided hairbands, and draped robes. Each holds a wreath before her chest, and the heads are designed to align precisely under the edge of the basket, contributing to the visual and structural transition between the upper and lower sections. The green-ground circular porcelain platform beneath them is decorated with gilt floral scrollwork and is encased by a gilt band featuring lion masks and rosettes. The base construction includes a recessed porcelain underside with bolts securing the upper sections. The gilt foot ring is ornamented with stylized leaf and dart patterns and rests on three lion paw feet. The biscuit porcelain and gilt combination was a hallmark of high-end Paris porcelain workshops during the Empire period. The impressed numerals on the underside suggest a model number and inventory code commonly used by Paris porcelain manufacturers, such as Dihl et Guérhard or Darte Frères. France, Circa: 1820

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