Mounted Chinese Vase on a Pedestal, for the Music Room, Brighton, Royal Pavilion
Medium
interiors
Classification
interiors
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Museum purchase through gift of Mrs. John Innes Kane
Accession Number
1948-40-75
About this artwork
A tall Chinese porcelain vase on a porcelain pedestal which is enclosed in an ormolu gallery in two tiers supported by columns, entwined by serpents, the first or lower tier of columns surmounted by a pagoda-like canopy hung with bells. The vases have ormolu-mounted dragon handles.
Art Historical Context
In the opulent Music Room of the Royal Pavilion in Brighton, England, this exquisite mounted Chinese vase on a pedestal exemplifies the lavish Chinoiserie style beloved by King George IV during the Regency era (1811–1820). Designed by British interior decorator Robert Jones between 1815 and 1822, the piece transforms a tall Chinese porcelain vase—likely an export ware from the late 18th or early 19th century—into a fantastical throne-like display. Enclosed within a two-tiered ormolu (gilded bronze) gallery supported by serpent-entwined columns, it features a pagoda-inspired canopy adorned with...