Vincennes soft-paste porcelain broth basin, cover and oval stand. White ground with gilded decoration and red striated highlights. The Stuart royal arms, in polychrome and gold, are painted on the cover and the stand. Island scenes inhabited by farmyard birds (hens, cockerels, ducks and geese) and a dog are painted in polychrome in three scenes on the cover, and two each on the bowl and stand. Birds in flight decorate other areas. This Vincennes broth basin is an exceptional and rare example of the manufactory’s early wares.

It is likely that it was specially commissioned for or by a prince of the House of Stuart. The most likely candidate is Charles Edward Stuart (1720-88), the Young Pretender, who spent many years in exile in France. There is record of a payment to the manufactory of 120 livres from ‘le prince Edouard’, and the Prince is known to have lodged briefly in the château de Vincennes in the winter of 1748. Some of the animal scenes may have been inspired by the compositions of Jean-Baptiste Oudry (1686-1755).

Broth basins were designed for use principally in the bedroom or boudoir, rather than the dining room; broth was appreciated for its remedial qualities and was often served to the sick. It may be that the fish finial was an indication that the basin was to be used for fish bouillons traditionally served on Fridays and holy days.

Text adapted from French Porcelain for English Palaces, Sèvres from the Royal Collection, London, 2009 and The First Georgians; Art and Monarchy 1714 - 1760, London, 2014.