A Royal Worcester porcelain 'Countess of Dudley' service…
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A Royal Worcester porcelain 'Countess of Dudley' service covered sugar bowl, dated 1865, the decoration by Thomas Scott Callowhill and James Callowhill, the jewelling and gilding by Samuel Ranford, Cup-shaped on three gilt lion's paw feet with a finialled raised cover, the bowl with three oval gilt-ground reserves decorated in coloured enamels with profile portraits of classical women, the bowl and cover otherwise decorated throughout with graduated turquoise jewelling against the finely-jewelled gilt ground, white-jewelled borders to the cover, rim, reserves, and underside, the underside of one foot signed 'T. & J. Callowhill', a printed factory mark to the underside of cover with date '65', 11 cm high. Other notes: this sucrier is believed to be a prototype or trial piece for the exquisite tea service commissioned by the city of Worcester Corporation and presented to lady Georgina Elizabeth Moncrieffe upon her marriage to William Ward, 1st Earl of Dudley in late 1865, later exhibited to great acclaim at the 1867 Exposition Universelle in Paris., at the request of the Earl, who sat as a director on the Royal Worcester board, a duplicate set was made for public exhibition at the factory, where it remains on display at the Museum of Royal Worcester.. Condition: Nibbles to decorations particularly inside and internal lid gilt loss
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- Lion's Paw - The decorative lion's paw has been used in furniture, silver, and ceramics for centuries. It is a stylized representation of the paw of a lion, often depicted in a highly realistic or stylized form.
In furniture design, lion's paws were popular in the neoclassical and Empire styles of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. They were often used as feet on tables, chairs, and other pieces of furniture. The lion's paw was a popular motif for furniture makers because it added a sense of grandeur and regalness to their pieces.
In silverware design, the lion's paw was often used on the feet of tea and coffee pots, as well as on other pieces of silverware such as wine coolers and tureens. The lion's paw was often used in combination with other neoclassical motifs, such as acanthus leaves or grape clusters, to create a sense of grandeur and classical elegance.
In ceramics, lion's paws were commonly used as feet on vases, urns, and other pottery items. The lion's paw was often depicted in relief or as a highly stylized form, and was sometimes used in combination with other decorative elements, such as garlands or swags. - Gilding - Gilding is a method of ornamentation whereby a thin sheet of gold metal is applied to items made of wood, leather, ceramics, glass and silver for decorative purposes.
For furniture including mirrors, the sheet of gold is usually applied over a coating of gesso. Gesso is a mixture of plaster of Paris and gypsum mixed with water and then applied to the carved wooden frames of mirrors and picture frames as a base for applying the gold leaf. After numerous coats of gesso have been applied, allowed to dry and then sanded a coat of "bole", a usually red coloured mixture of clay and glue is brushed on and allowed to dry, after which the gold leaf is applied. Over time parts of the gilding will rub off so the base colour can be seen. In water gilding, this was generally a blue colour, while in oil gilding, the under layer was often yellow. In Victorian times, gilders frequently used red as a pigment beneath the gold leaf.
Metal was often gilded by a process known as fire gilding. Gold mixed with mercury was applied and heated, causing the mercury to evaporate, the long-term effect of which was to kill or disable the craftsman or woman from mercury poisoning. The pursuit of beauty has claimed many victims, not the least of which were the artists who made those pieces so highly sought after today.
This item has been included into following indexes:
- Royal Worcester (England), item types