This is a charming frill vase made by the Chelsea Porcelain factory in about 1760. The vase is in the Rococo style and it speaks for itself why this style of vase is called a "frill" vase.
This vase has undergone restorations (although it still holds water perfectly) and is therefore offered As Found (A/F) at a reduced price.
Chelsea was one of the very early adopters of porcelain in the British china industry. Founded in 1744 the Chelsea pottery was for about 40 years the leading maker of fine chinaware, excelling in their sense of style, perfection and constant innovation and inspiring many following generations of china makers. The company was started by French silversmith Nicholas Sprimont and you can see the influence of the French style of silverware in the shapes of many of his items, which often were taken from = previous versions in silver that Sprimont made early in his career.
Chelsea items are very rare as production levels were still low at the time and of course many items simply have not survived. The Chelsea pottery was only in production for about 30 years, which further adds to the scarceness of the items; it is rare to come across Chelsea items.
Frill vases are a thing of the 18th Century and they wonderfully display the mercurial, over-the-top Rococo style. Not only does this vase have ruffles on its body, it has various complex encrusted flowers, and if that wasn't enough, there are beautiful birds on each side. This particular model of vase was also made by Derby and they were made both with and without covers.
The vase is unmarked except an imprinted "R" on the underside and three vague patch marks from firing.
CONDITION REPORT The vase is in good usable condition but has some repairs; some of the ruffles have been repaired, the rim of the vase has been repaired as well as one of the handles, and there are some losses to the encrusted flowers. The repairs have been done fairly well and do not stand out and the vase will hold water and is still excellent for use as a flower vase.
Antique British porcelain is never perfect. Kilns were fired on coal in the 1800s, and this meant that china from that period can have some firing specks from flying particles. British makers were also known for their experimentation, and sometimes this resulted in technically imperfect results. Due to the shrinkage in the kiln, items can have small firing lines or develop crazing over time, which should not be seen as damage but as an imperfection of the maker's recipes, probably unknown at the time of making. Items have often been used for many years and can have normal signs of wear, and gilt can have signs of slight disintegration even if never handled. I will reflect any damage, repairs, obvious stress marks, crazing or heavy wear in the item description but some minor scratches, nicks, stains and gilt disintegration can be normal for vintage items and need to be taken into account.
There is widespread confusion on the internet about the difference between chips and nicks, or hairlines and cracks. I will reflect any damage as truthfully as I can, i.e. a nick is a tiny bit of damage smaller than 1mm and a chip is something you can easily see with the eye; a glazing line is a break in the glazing only; hairline is extremely tight and/or superficial and not picked up by the finger; and a crack is obvious both to the eye and the finger.
DIMENSIONS 23cm (9") tall
Chelsea frill vase with birds, Rococo ca 1760 A/F
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We always aim to have happy customers so if you have an issue with or questions about your item, please contact us and we will do anything we can to resolve the issue with you!
