Tureen in the form of a goose (one of a pair)
Unknown Artist
ca. 1750
Medium
Faience (tin-glazed earthenware)
Classification
Ceramics-Pottery
Culture
German, Strasbourg
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Lesley and Emma Sheafer Collection, Bequest of Emma A. Sheafer, 1973
Accession Number
1974.356.239a, b
Tags
Art Historical Context
This delightful tureen, shaped like a plump goose and part of a matching pair, exemplifies the whimsical charm of 18th-century European ceramics. Crafted around 1750 in Strasbourg,—a renowned hub for faience production—it served as a functional yet festive serving vessel for soups or stews at lavish dinner tables. The bird form, with its lifelike details, reflects the playful zoomorphism popular in Rococo decorative arts, blending utility with sculptural flair. Made of faience, or tin-glazed earthenware, the piece features a white clay body coated in opaque tin enamel before vibrant overglaze...