Pair of Vases (Pots Pourris à Bobèches)
Jean-Claude Duplessis
c. 1759
Medium
Soft-paste porcelain, polychrome enamels, and gilding
Dimensions
1994.371.1: 24.2 × 15 × 8.9 cm (9 1/2 × 5 7/8 × 3 1/2 in.); 1994.371.2: 24.8 × 15.3 × 8.9 cm (9 3/4 × 6 × 3 1/2 in.)
Classification
vase
Department
Applied Arts of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
135716
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
These multi-functional vessels served as both candleholders and room fresheners. Potpourri or burning pastilles were inserted at the foot of each vase, and the perfume was released through the intricate piercing along the sides and the bulblike projection between the candleholders. The resulting scent created the illusion that the porcelain flowers atop the vases were alive.