A very rare Meissen porcelain Kakiemon ice cooler and cover, circa 1730
Live auction begins on:
June 24, 12:30 PM GMT
Estimate
10,000 - 15,000 EUR
Lot Details
Description
probably modelled by J.C.L. Lücke, of deep cylindrical form, the domed cover surmounted with a bust of Turk forming the finial with a Böttger lustre and gilt cloak and red headdress, the base affixed with Frauenkopf scroll-handles, painted with a bird perched in large branches of indianische Blumen issuing from pierced rockwork, the rim with an iron-red fretwork band, the cover with puce and iron-red trellis, crossed swords mark in underglaze-blue
Height 12 ⅝ in; 32 cm
The Property of a Gentleman, Sotheby’s, London, 3 June 1969, lot 22;
Anonymous sale, Christie’s, London, 6 October 1986, lot 201;
Anonymous sale, Christie’s, London, 5 October 1987, lot 208;
Leo & Doris Hodroff Collection, bearing paper label;
Property from The Collection of Leo & Doris Hodroff, Christie’s, New York, 20 May 2008, lot 96 (sold 27 400$);
Anonymous sale, Metz, Heidelberg, 14 October 2023, lot 234;
Acquired at the above sale.
The handles of this form have been attributed to the Meissen modeller J.C.L. Lücke, and his specification of models for the years 1728-29, includes: 'Einen Henckel in Forma einer Sirena auf einen Eyß Topf', [a handle in the form of a siren, on an ice bucket] (quoted in Rainer Rückert, Meissener Porzellan 1710-1810, exh. cat., Bayerisches Nationalmuseum, Munich, 1966, p. 124, cat. no. 525, where a variation of the form from the Schneider collection is illustrated). The Schneider example is most recently discussed at length by Julia Weber, Meißener Porzellane mit Dekoren nach ostasiatischen Vorbildern, Stiftung Ernst Schneider in Schloss Lustheim, Band II, Munich, 2013, pp. 14-18, kat. no. 1.
The present lot is a variation of the Schnieder model which features a curved lower section over a slightly domed foot. It would appear that very few examples of the present form are recorded in the literature. A second example was offered at Bonhams, London, 7 December 2011, lot 65, where it was listed as being in an English Private Collection since the 1930s.
Cranfield University used non-invasive X-ray fluorescence (XRF) for this lot to screen the green enamel for chromium, which was not detected, a result consistent with 18th century manufacture.
