Bell-shaped cup and saucer with two women and a boy with butterflies and flower sprays
ca. 1750 - ca. 1774
Medium
turning
Dimensions
1.8; 3.1; 3.8; 6; 3.2; 5.8; 9.4
About this artwork
Legaat van de heer J.G.A.N. de Vries, Den Haag
Art Historical Context
This delicate bell-shaped cup and saucer, crafted anonymously around 1750–1774, exemplifies the refined ceramic artistry of the 18th century. Standing just 3.8 cm tall, its petite scale suggests it may have served as a novelty item, toy, or part of a collector's cabinet of curiosities. The medium of "turning"—a lathe-based technique used to smooth and perfect ceramic forms after initial throwing—highlights the meticulous craftsmanship typical of European potteries during the Rococo era, when porcelain imitation flourished amid growing trade with Asia. Adorned with charming scenes of two women...
About the Artist
anonymous
In the vast tapestry of art history, "Anonymous" stands not as a singular individual but as a collective designation for countless unidentified creators whose works have endured across millennia. These artists, spanning prehistoric cave painters to medieval illuminators and folk craftsmen, produced the foundational layers of human visual culture. Prior to the Renaissance, when individual fame emer...