Martha Washington States China saucer

Saucer
Pocelain (hard-paste), enamel, gilt
c. 1795

Status

Not on view

Label Text

On April 24, 1796, Dutch merchant Andreas Everardus van Braam Houckgeest (1739-1801) arrived in Philadelphia from Canton with "A Box of China for Lady Washington." Van Braam designed the porcelain's decoration, which symbolizes his belief in the unity of the colonies that formed the United States and his scorn for their former ruler, King George III. The initials "MW" shine at the center of the design.

Read MoreRead Less

Date1795

Designer Andreas Everardus van Braam Houckgeest (1739-1801)

Geography Made - ChinaDecorated - China

Medium/TechniquePorcelain (hard-paste), enamel, gilt

DimensionsOverall (H x W x D): 1 5/16 in. x 6 3/16 in. x 6 3/16 in. (3.33 cm x 15.72 cm x 15.72 cm)

Credit LinePurchase, 1981

Object numberW-2803

DescriptionCircular saucer with a plain edge and a shallow foot ring, decorated in overglaze polychrome enamels and gilt. The center of the well features the interlocking black initials “MW” surrounded by a green laurel wreath at the center of a gilded sunburst. Below the sunburst is a ribbon, touched red at the tips, with the motto “DECUS ET TUTAMEN AB ILLO" written in black. A blue snake, biting its tail, with gilded scales and its top outlined in black, encircles the top of the rim exterior. Below it is a chain of fifteen wide green links outlined in black joined by smaller gilded links, outlined in red; each of the green links contains the name of a state: “VIRGINIA.”, “KENTUCKY”, “No CAROLINA.”, “So CAROLINA.”, “GEORGIA.”, “NEW HAMPSHIRE”, “MASSACHUSETTS.”, “VERMONT”, “RHODE ISLAND.”, “C[ONN]ECTICUT.”, “REW YORK”, “IERSEY.”, “PENNSYLVANIA”, “DELAWARE”, and “MARYLAND”, respectively. Traces of gilt appear along the rim.

Pattern name: States
Published ReferencesHannah Boettcher and Ronald W. Fuchs II, "Martha Washington's 'United States China': A New Link Found in a Family Notebook," Ceramics in America (Milwaukee: Chipstone Foundation, 2020), 50-75.

Susan Gray Detweiler, American Presidential China (Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2008), 26-27.

Carol Borchert Cadou, The George Washington Collection: Fine and Decorative Arts at Mount Vernon (New York: Hudson Hills Press, 2006), 149.

Jaap van Braam Houckgeest, “Hidden meaning,” The Magazine Antiques 166/4 (October 2004), 38, 40.

Jean McClure Mudge, Chinese Export Porcelain in North America (New York: Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., 1986), 215.

Jean Gordon Lee, Philadelphians and the China Trade 1784-1844 (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1984), 88-89.

Susan Gray Detweiler, George Washington's Chinaware (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1982), 151, 154-158.

Arlene M. Palmer, A Winterthur Guide to Chinese Export Porcelain (New York: Crown Publishers Inc., 1976), 130.

Jean McClure Mudge, Chinese Export Porcelain for the American Trade, 1785-1835 (Wilmington: University of Delaware Press, 1962), 153, 174.

Mount Vernon China (Mount Vernon: Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, 1949), 22-24.

Samuel W. Woodhouse, Jr., “Martha Washington’s China and ‘Mr. Van Braam,’” The Magazine Antiques 27/5 (May 1935): 186-188.

Benson J. Lossing, Mount Vernon and its Associations: Historical, Biographical, and Pictoral (New York, New York: W. A. Townsend, 1859), 240-241.

Mount Vernon's object research is ongoing and information about this object is subject to change. For information on image use and reproductions, click here.