268 - Pair of magnificent funnel-shaped vases with Limoges enamel painting from Sèvres

Pair of magnificent funnel-shaped vases with Limoges enamel painting from Sèvres Body widening in a funnel shape above the flared base, with a sweeping rim. An all-over cobalt background with a flowing ornamental border in relief-like enamel painting applied in white. Rich gold decoration. Engraved “EL 90 8 PN.” Minimal restoration; manufacturer’s mark. H. 53 cm. The model for Limoges enamel painting was the work from the Limousin region, in which elaborate scenes and arabesque decorations were applied to copper using so-called “painter’s enamel” in predominantly blue-and-white, and occasionally polychrome, color schemes, and then gilded. Leading the way, the French Sèvres manufactory, as well as the English porcelain manufactories Worcester and Minton, emulated this technique on porcelain, thereby significantly advancing the technical and artistic development of European manufactories in the second half of the 19th century. A pair of French porcelain vases with a cobalt-blue ground and arabesque decoration in white Limoges-style enamel painting. Minor restoration. Manufacturer’s mark. France. Sèvres. 1891.