Bibliotheque du Roi - Sevres Garniture

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Magnificent porcelain garniture from manufacture royale de Sèvres, in famous "Bleu du Roi" (Royal blue) color, specially commissioned to commemorate the alliance of Marie Antoinette to Dauphin (future Louis XVI) in 1770. It was made by the artist Pierre-Simon-Benjamin Duvivier (1730-1819). Probably gifted to George IV, King of the United Kingdom (1762-1830) as a diplomatic gift in the years after the wedding of Empress Marie-Thérèse's daughter, Marie-Antoinette, and Louis XV's grandson, the future Louis XVI. The records show that in 1826 the garniture was in Carlton House, London. The garniture is currently in the Collection of Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II of England, and displayed at the Blue Drawing Room of Buckingham Palace in London.

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The garniture contains:

Pot-pourri Mercure

Unglazed medallions of the Roman god of commerce, Mercury, give this vase its name, made in circa 1768. Made out of soft-paste porcelain and painted in rich blue ground color known as "Bleu du Roi" (Royal blue), which was introduced at the factory in 1763. On top are the gilded decorations and gilt bronze mounts including a band separating the cover from the body. Ribbons are laid all over the bell-shaped cover and foliate handles enhance the decoration even further.
A potpourri vase is specifically designed for holding potpourri. In the traditional designs, a potpourri container is provided with a pierced fitted lid, through which the scent may slowly diffuse.
A similar vase, dated 1767, is in the Royal Collection of England, bears the images of Louis XV and the Empress Marie-Thérèse.

Vase à pied de globe

This model is known from 1769 with several variations in the shape of the handles, foot, and lower part of the vase. This type of decoration resembling cameos carved in low relief is known as grisaille. It is typical of neo-classical style decoration on vases and other items of the 1770s. It may have been developed by the head of the painters' workshop, Jean-Baptiste-Etienne Genest who is recorded painting vases and other items with this decoration from 1769. Unfortunately, his work cannot be identified for certain as, being the workshop head, he wasn't required to use a mark as was usual for other painters. From the mid-1760s onwards, the plain ground colors of the 1750s are often enriched with gilded patterns. This gilded pattern is particularly rich and was described as 'briques d'or' in the factory records.

Vase Carrache

A plaster model of a variant of this shape in the Sèvres factory archives, inscribed 'vase Carrache', was published by Albert Troude in 1897, however, surviving examples are extremely rare. Its use of columns, laurel swags, and medallions painted in grey tones to imitate carved marble (known as en grisaille), is typical of the French neo-classical style of the 1770s. The vase has a very elongated form, on top is painted with six medallion heads en camaïeu and decorated with raised and gilt festoons and moldings.

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