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Source Description
This bucket-shaped cup with two interlaced scrolls as handles fits perfectly into the saucer’s socket, snuggly holding the cup. Likely intended for the sick and aging, this cup and saucer pairing ensured that the cup remained steady and no liquid fell onto the ailing or weak individual. Intended to serve hot and cold milk drinks that were prescribed to remedy fever, melancholy, and the effects of drinking too much alcohol, this type of cup was also used to consume tea and hot chocolate, as there are records of patrons ordering this vessel type to match tea and chocolate services. It is possible that Sèvres initially designed the gobelet et soucoupe “enfoncé” for Madame de Pompadour, Louis XV’s head mistress, who was incredibly sick in the early 1760s; Sèvres archives indicate that nobody else bought this type of dish until after her death in 1764. Ornamented with fantastical birds of paradise and garlands of pink, red, and periwinkle flowers, this cup and saucer was sure to bring cheer to its feeble user.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
3862
label
Cup and Socketed Saucer (gobelet et soucoupe “enfoncé”)
core
obj
dtoType
object
citationUrl
pageCount
4
Source metadata
id
3862
sourceUrl
contentType
object
stage
normalized
title
Cup and Socketed Saucer (gobelet et soucoupe “enfoncé”)
description
This bucket-shaped cup with two interlaced scrolls as handles fits perfectly into the saucer’s socket, snuggly holding the cup. Likely intended for the sick and aging, this cup and saucer pairing ensured that the cup remained steady and no liquid fell onto the ailing or weak individual. Intended to serve hot and cold milk drinks that were prescribed to remedy fever, melancholy, and the effects of drinking too much alcohol, this type of cup was also used to consume tea and hot chocolate, as there are records of patrons ordering this vessel type to match tea and chocolate services. It is possible that Sèvres initially designed the gobelet et soucoupe “enfoncé” for Madame de Pompadour, Louis XV’s head mistress, who was incredibly sick in the early 1760s; Sèvres archives indicate that nobody else bought this type of dish until after her death in 1764. Ornamented with fantastical birds of paradise and garlands of pink, red, and periwinkle flowers, this cup and saucer was sure to bring cheer to its feeble user.
date
1770
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
cups (drinking vessels)
saucers
imageCount
4
pageCount
4
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
10.5
height
15
dimensionsRaw
Cup and Saucer (A & B) H: 4 1/8 × Diam: 5 7/8 in. (10.5 × 15 cm); Cup (A) H: 3 7/16 × W with handle: 4 1/8 × D: 3 3/8 in. (8.8 × 10.4 × 8.5 cm); Saucer (B) H: 1 9/16 × Diam: 5 7/8 in. (4 × 15 cm).
Source extras
inscriptions
[Factory Mark] Blue Intertwined Lls on Saucer; [Date] Blue R (1770) on saucer; [Painter’s Mark] Blue diagonal line with cross ( for Étienne Évans) on saucer; [Sticker] Torn brown sticker with red boarder with 115 written in pencil affixed to saucer; [ Sticker] square brown sticker with 28 printed in ink affixed to saucer; [ Factory Mark] Blue Intertwined Lls on Cup; [Date] Blue R (1770) on bottom of cup; [Painter’s Mark] Blue diagonal line with cross ( for Étienne Évans) on bottom of cup; [Sticker] brown square sticker with 28 printed in ink affixed to bottom of cup
med
porcelain
creator_ids
1916
34521
collection_ids
none
exhibition_ids
none
Page inventory
seq
1
type
photo
mediaId
6808b1e426ab49f7
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
2
type
photo
mediaId
25f661fdfb283013
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
3
type
photo
mediaId
4f5bf16714480761
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
4
type
photo
mediaId
f18650308e86ab69
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no