Bowl (part of a service)
Unknown Artist
late 18th–early 19th century
Medium
Hard-paste porcelain
Dimensions
Diameter: 5 5/16 in. (13.5 cm)
Classification
Ceramics-Porcelain-Export
Culture
Chinese, for American market
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Helena Woolworth McCann Collection, Gift of Winfield Foundation, 1951
Accession Number
51.86.158
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delicate hard-paste porcelain bowl, of a larger service, hails from China in the late 18th early 19th century crafted specifically for the American market. Measuring just 5 5/16 inches (13.5 cm) in diameter, it exemplifies the exquisite export porcelain that flooded Western households during the height of the China Trade era. Adorned with bird motifs popular decorative theme symbolizing grace and vitality in Chinese art—the bowl would have been one of many pieces in an elegant table service, used for everything from soups to desserts. Hard-paste porcelain, made from kaolin clay and fired...