Sophie von der Goltz
Head of Sale
Lot 36
A Meissen ice cooler and cover, circa 1730-35
3 July 2025, 14:00 BST
London, New Bond Street£5,000 - £8,000
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Raphael Machiels
Associate Specialist
Ghislaine Howard
Sale Coordinator
A Meissen ice cooler and cover, circa 1730-35
Painted in Kakiemon style with scattered flower sprays and a large kylin or Fo lion decorated in Böttger lustre on each side, with caryatid C-scrolled handles heightened in Böttger lustre, the cover applied with an artichoke finial, 31.5cm high, crossed swords mark in underglaze-blue (small chips to handles, restored chip to cover rim) (2)
Footnotes
The earliest mention of this shape is in 1728 in a manufactory commission report that includes "two large ice pots...after an Indian model" for the cabinet minister Count von Watzdorf. The original finial in the form of a seated pagoda figure was replaced by an artichoke finial and slightly simplified handles at the beginning of the 1730s. Although mostly referred to as an ice pot, the shape is also listed in a French price list of 1731 as "pot a Ollio" or soup pot (see J. Weber, Meißener Porzellane mit Dekoren nach ostasiatischen Vorbildern, vol. II, 2013, cat. 1). However, it seems probable that it was intended for display rather than use. The lion is based on Chinese, Kangxi, vases in the collection of Augustus the Strong; one is illustrated by U. Pietsch, Meissener Porzellan und seine ostasiatischen Vorbilder, 1996, ill. 41.
An ice cooler of the same shape but decorated with large Kakiemon flowers was sold at Bonhams, Paris, 29-30 October 2024, lot 37.
