Georgian Oval Dish with Meissen Marcolini Mark, c. 1774-1815

A soft paste porcelain oval dish in the manner of Meissen with a copy of the Meissen mark which was used between 1774 and 1815 (crossed swords with a star underneath). The quality of the painting is really fine with a range of different flowers from tulips, morning glory, vetch and harebells to forget-me-nots.

The dish is in excellent condition with no chips or cracks. There is rubbing to the gilding around the edge, but enamels are still good. As well as the Meissen mark, the dish has the number 13 painted on the underside and an old dealer’s label.

Meissen was the first porcelain manufacturer in Europe. Copying from the Chinese, it was the discovery of the kaolin clay which allowed the alchemist Johann Friedrich Böttger to finally produce ‘white gold’ in Saxony. Such was the preciousness, that the recipe was closely guarded. Nevertheless, copies abounded and the Meissen mark was widely copied. Unlike the hard paste of Meissen, this dish is made of soft paste and is therefore is heavier and the body less refined.