Porcelain from Vincennes

Art Historical Context

Created in 1862, this etching titled *celain from Vincennes* the refined elegance of 18th French porcelain produced at the royal manufactory Vincennes. Jules-Finand Jacquemart rendered the delicate and intricate details of these luxury objects with remarkable precision, while Auguste Delâtre handled the printing. Published in the influential art journal *Gazette des Beaux-Arts*, the print exemplifies the 19th-century fascination with earlier decorative arts during France’s Second Empire. Etching proved an ideal medium for conveying the luminous surfaces and subtle modeling of porcelain, allowing fine lines to suggest the translucency and painted decoration of the vessels. roughly 9½ by 6¾ inches on the plate, the work demonstrates the technical skill required to translate three-dimensional objects into a two-dimensional print that could reach a wide audience of collectors and scholars. Now part of the Metropolitan Museum’s Department of Drawings and Prints, this sheet was given in 1928 by Louis R. Metcalfe. It offers today’s visitors a glimpse into both the historic prestige of Vincennes porcelain and the vibrant 19th-century print culture that helped preserve and celebrate such treasures.

About the Artist

Gazette des Beaux-Arts|Jules-Ferdinand Jacquemart|Auguste Delâtre (French|French) · 1837 | –1880 |

French, Paris 1837–1880 Paris|