Pair of Flower Pots (Pots de fleurs) (c. 1775): Art, History and Details

Pair of Flower Pots (Pots de fleurs) (c. 1775) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection. The museum's creator attribution is Bourg-la-Reine Factory (French).

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

The mark on this piece indicates that it was made after the Mennecy factory was moved to Bourg-la- Reine in 1773. The tradition of Mennecy's decoration on soft-paste porcelain can be recognized in the piece, but its style has been modified in response to the emerging neo-classic taste. The flowers are now organized into formal garland's and motifs of classical origin, such as the lion's heads, are introduced.

Object facts

• Title: Pair of Flower Pots (Pots de fleurs)
• Date: c. 1775
• Creator attribution: Bourg-la-Reine Factory (French)
• Culture: France, Bourg-la-Reine, 18th century
• Type: Ceramic
• Technique: soft-paste porcelain with enamel decoration
• Dimensions: Overall: 11.8 x 16.5 cm (4 5/8 x 6 1/2 in.)
• Collection: Decorative Arts
• Department: Decorative Art and Design
• Accession number: 1962.374

A detail from the museum

These objects would have acted as cachepots, ornamental containers in which a flower pot is placed to hide it from view.

Collection credit

The Norweb Collection

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.