Perfume burner in the form of a dove-cote
Medium
Soft-paste porcelain
Dimensions
Overall (confirmed): 20 5/16 × 9 3/16 × 8 1/4 in. (51.6 × 23.3 × 21 cm)
Classification
Ceramics-Porcelain
Culture
British, Chelsea
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Wrightsman, 1971
Accession Number
1971.206.25
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the whimsical world of 18th-century British porcelain with the *Perfume burner in the form of a doveote*, crafted by the renowned Chelsea Porcelain Manuf between 1759 and 1765. This delightful soft-paste porcelain object, standing over 20 inches tall, mimics a charming dovecote—a traditional birdhouse—complete with perching pigeons, a sly fox lurking nearby, and blooming flowers. As a functional luxury item, it would have been filled with fragrant pastilles that released scents when heated, perfuming grand Georgian interiors. Chelsea, one of England's pioneering porcelain factories ...
About the Artist
Chelsea Porcelain Manufactory · 1744–1784
**Chelsea Porcelain Manufactory** The Chelsea Porcelain Manufactory, Britain's pioneering porcelain enterprise, was founded around 1743 in Chelsea, London, by two Huguenot silversmiths: Nicholas Sprimont from Liège and Charles Gouyn. Sprimont, trained in Paris as a goldsmith before immigrating to England, brought his expertise in luxury metalwork to the venture, while Gouyn handled early sales th...