Decorated in grisaille, with a central scene depicting Minerva standing over and protecting the sleeping Telemachus from Cupid and Venus amongst clouds.
Decorated in grisaille, with a central scene depicting Minerva standing over and protecting the sleeping Telemachus from Cupid and Venus amongst clouds.
A large polychrome charger was in the well-know collection of the Dr. Pagoda (Sotheby’s Monaco, Belle Collection de Porcelaines de Chine – La Collection du Docteur Pagoda et de divers amateurs, 23 juin 1986, lot 1124.
For two grisaille plates, see Godden, Oriental Export Market Porcelain, pl. 142 and Veiga, A Porcelana da Companhia da Indias, pl. 83).
This scene, often misidentified, depicts Minerva protecting the sleeping Telemachus from Cupid and Venus. It is based on Les aventures de Télémaque(1699) by François de Fénelon, the source for most postclassical treatments of the son of Ulysse. The episode in which Telemachus recounts his dream of seeing Venus “cleaving the clouds, drawn by two turtle doves” is one of the most famous passages in the Fénelon narrative. It soon became a popular subject for operas and tapestries as well for paintings and engravings.
A new technique of decoration on Chinese Export Porcelain emerged during the 1720s, characterized by the introduction of a new glazing technique: the grisaille decoration, also known as “encre de Chine”. This technique allowed for the creation of very fine black-and-white decorations, thus faithfully reproducing engravings on porcelain. It became one of the preferred methods for creating European decorations during the second quarter of the 18th century.