Chelsea porcelain

Chelsea porcelain, soft-paste porcelain made at a factory in Chelsea, London, established in 1743 by Charles Gouyn and Nicolas Sprimont, the latter a silversmith. By the 1750s the sole manager was Sprimont, from whose genius stemmed Chelsea’s greatest achievements. In 1769 the factory was sold to James Cox; and he sold it a year later to William Duesbury of Derby, Derbyshire, who maintained it until 1784, producing porcelain generally referred to as Chelsea-Derbyware. In that year the kilns and workshops at Chelsea were demolished; many molds were destroyed and others removed to Derby.

The progress of the Chelsea factory is conveniently distinguished by the respective marks of four periods: the triangle period (1743–49/50), the raised anchor period (1750–52), the red anchor period (1752–56), and the gold anchor period (1758–70). The incised triangle is found on translucent white porcelain whose body contains a proportion of crushed lead glass. Held to the light it shows points of greater translucency known as “pinholes.” Forms are markedly Rococo, some based on the silver designs of Sprimont, who was obviously inspired by the work of the French silversmith and ornemaniste Juste-Aurèle Meissonier, an important early Rococo designer. Some of the rare cups, coffeepots, and teapots are decorated with sprays of prunus or tea blossoms in relief inspired by the blanc de chine made at Te-hua, China. Teapots and jars in the form of a squat Chinese figure are based, like some other specimens of triangle porcelain, on wares from Saint-Cloud and Mennecy that were probably derived from silver in the first place. A few figures are known, not all of which are really successful, but “The Lovers,” a large, vigorously modelled group existing in two versions, which was probably the work of a French modeller, bears a mark in blue of a trident intersecting a crown, and this has been assigned to Chelsea. One model of the popular “Girl in a Swing” is now known to have come from a breakaway factory probably operated by Gouyn and situated about a mile from the parent factory. Relatively common in comparison with other wares are small “goat and bee” jugs molded in relief. The jug rests on the backs of two goats lying down with an applied bee and flower decoration beneath the spout and a handle shaped like a twig.

By a rearrangement of the proprietorship in 1749, Gouyn withdrew, and Sprimont was left to manage the factory with the patronage of the Duke of Cumberland. The wares were now marked with an anchor in relief raised on a small oval medallion. At this time the factory began to do its own enamel painting. The Japanese Kakiemon porcelain was closely copied. Lively fable scenes were painted by the Irish miniaturist Jeffrey Hamet O’Neal, and harbour scenes inspired by Meissen were painted by William Duvivier from northern France. Figures are very rare, but they include a notable series of birds after illustrations in British Birds by George Edwards. Raised anchor, as well as early red anchor, wares exhibit small patches of greater translucency, called “moons,” when held to the light. The red anchor period began in 1752. The wares include some extremely well-modelled figures, nearly all of which were based on those of Johann Joachim Kändler and his assistants at Meissen. Especially notable are the Italian comedy figures, the characters represented in typical poses. Recently some of the finest figures have been attributed to a Belgian modeller, Joseph Willems, and these include the 21-inch “Una and the Lion,” the largest figure made at Chelsea. The fashion for decorative table settings, of which the figures formed part, led to the making of large centrepieces, epergnes, and tureens in a variety of forms—rabbits, carp, twin doves, asparagus bundles, and cabbages—while dessert dishes were often modelled in leaf form. Flower-painting included imitations of Meissen indianische Blumen (Oriental flowers) and deutsche Blumen (naturally delineated German flowers). The German fashion for exact botanical specimens inspired depictions of flowers from illustrations in Philip Miller’s Gardeners Dictionary. Miller had sketched many of his illustrations at Sir Hans Sloane’s Botanic Garden so the resulting porcelain designs were called “Hans Sloane” flowers. Toward the end of the period, among wares sold in 1756, the underglaze ground known as “mazarin blue” made its appearance, together with a limited amount of gilding.

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From 1756 to 1758 the factory was closed due to Sprimont’s illness. During this time the Seven Years’ War had started, and Meissen was under occupation by the troops of Frederick II the Great. Cumberland seems to have lost interest in Chelsea, and the royal factory of Vincennes had been reestablished at Sèvres. When Chelsea reopened in 1758 it had adopted the styles of Sèvres, as well as a new mark—the gold anchor. Coloured grounds were now favoured—the so-called mazarin blue (the Sèvres gros bleur), claret (the Sèvres rose Pompadour), and turquoise in conjunction with a lustrous lead glaze much thicker and more glasslike than those glazes used earlier. Gilding was often rich and lavish. The factory received orders for specially designed services, notably one from Queen Charlotte for a service for her brother, the Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Rococo vases were fashionable, and some, like the well-known Dudley vases, were made without regard for expense, following the practice at Sèvres. Figures now had well-marked Rococo scroll bases, were often large, and were usually given backgrounds (sometimes elaborate) of modelled flowers, known as bocage. Two well-known groups of this kind are the “Music Lesson” and the “Dancing Lesson,” both after François Boucher. Some of the painting was after Antoine Watteau, and floral decoration and exotic birds were both popular, the latter especially based on Vincennes or Sèvres prototypes. During the red and gold anchor periods Chelsea made many miniature pieces, including scent bottles in a variety of forms, étuis (cases for small objects, like scissors), bodkin cases, and a variety of trinkets, which were known in the 18th century as “Chelsea toys.”

Reproductions and forgeries of Chelsea porcelain are numerous. Copies in hard-paste porcelain have been made by Samson of Paris and others; those in soft-paste usually come from Tournai, Belg., with which Chelsea had some connections in the 18th century; bone-china copies were made in England during the 19th century; and bone ash was included in the body of deceptive specimens made in Torquay, Devon, in the 1950s. Many of these bear an anchor mark that purports to be a Chelsea anchor mark, but they are larger and differently placed than the genuine Chelsea anchor. The genuine marking is about one-third of an inch in height, and on figures it is placed on the back, fairly high up if possible; it is never under the base. All Chelsea plates and dishes have three or four small, widely spaced imperfections in the glaze inside the footring (“stilt” marks). If these are missing, the specimen was not made at Chelsea, even though it may be contemporary.