Vase with gold fern decoration
1870s
Medium
Bone china
Dimensions
confirmed: 5 3/8 × 2 3/4 × 2 3/4 in. (13.7 × 7 × 7 cm)
Classification
Ceramics-Porcelain
Culture
British, Worcester
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Helene Fortunoff and Robert Grossman, 2017
Accession Number
2018.62.101
Art Historical Context
This delicate bone china vase, produced by the renowned Worcester factory in the 1870s, exemplifies the pinnacle of Victorian British porcelain craftsmanship. Standing just 5⅜ inches tall, its petite form—measuring 2¾ × 2¾ inches at the base—makes it an ideal decorative accent for a mantel or table. Worcester, a leader in the porcelain industry since the 18th century, perfected bone china, a translucent material blending kaolin, feldspar, and bone ash for exceptional strength and a luminous glow that rivals Oriental imports. The vase's standout feature is its elegant gold fern decoration, han...
About the Artist
Worcester factory · 1751–2008
The Worcester porcelain factory, established in 1751 in Worcester, England, by physician Dr. John Wall and apothecary William Davis along with 14 partners, marked the birth of one of Britain's most enduring ceramic enterprises. Investing £4,500 at Warmstry House on the River Severn, the founders drew on contacts with the Bristol porcelain manufactory to develop a novel soft-paste porcelain using s...