D2633. Cashmere Palette Ewer

Delft, circa 1710

DIMENSIONS
Height: 22.9 cm. (9 in.)

PROVENANCE
Private Collection;
Collection Bernard Stodel;
Hotel Drouot, Paris, November 20-22 1924, Faiences Anciennes, lot 49;
Collection Paul Blancan, no. 102

LITERATURE
Auction catalogue Drouot, 20- 24 November 1924, Faiences Anciennes Françaises & Étrangères, Collection de Monsieur P.B., lot 49

NOTE
This ewer is a fine example of the so-called “cashmere palette,” a term coined by nineteenth-century connoisseurs to describe Delftware of about 1700–1720 decorated in a vibrant triad of cobalt blue, iron-red, and green enamels, occasionally heightened with touches of manganese or yellow. Executed in the demanding grand feu technique, these pieces took their nickname from the dense and colorful motifs of the prized woolen shawls imported from India, though their pictorial sources lay primarily in Chinese famille verte porcelain of the Kangxi period (1662–1722). Delft potters translated these imported models into their own idiom, expanding the color range and intensifying the tones through the application of an additional transparent lead glaze, which produced a luminous, enamel-like finish.

The decorative scheme of this ewer reflects this hybrid heritage: rocky outcrops, birds perched among blossoming chrysanthemums and peonies, and smaller birds in animated flight populate the central field. These motifs, derived from East Asian prototypes, were framed and enriched with scrolling borders and stylized foliage in a manner indebted to European baroque ornament. Such elements recall the designs of Daniel Marot, court architect to William III, whose adaptation of the elaborate French style for Dutch interiors left a lasting imprint on the decorative arts.