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Figure with cymbals

Figure with cymbals
Biscuit porcelain (hard paste)
Niderviller pottery, c. 1793-1797
Figure with cymbals
Figure with cymbals
Biscuit porcelain (hard paste)
Niderviller pottery, c. 1793-1797
Figure with cymbals Biscuit porcelain (hard paste) Niderviller pottery, c. 1793-1797
Status
Not on view
Label Text

The smooth surfaces of unglazed biscuit porcelain mimic the purity of classical sculpture and made it a fashionable choice for table ornaments in the second half of the eighteenth century. When set atop glittering, mirrored plateaux amid flowers and candlelabra, such figures created a fantastic, mythical tableau. George Washington may have purchased this figure during the last weeks of his presidency for use in the "New Room" at Mount Vernon. The cymbal player's exceptional costume, a European interpretation of Chinese dress, would have heightened the theatrical atmosphere of Washington's table display.

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Date1793-1797
Maker (French, 1754 - present)
Geography Manufactured - France
DimensionsOverall (H): 5 3/4 in. (14.61 cm)
Credit LinePurchase, 1985
Object numberW-2317
DescriptionBiscuit porcelain figure of a man holding cymbals in each hand; his right hand is raised and his left hand is lowered as if he is about to bring the cymbals he is holding together; he wears a conical hat, a wide scalloped collar, a jacket and pantaloons with a wide sash around his waist, a long robe with bell sleeves, and boots; his features are distinguished by a mustache and almond shaped eyes.
Published ReferencesSusan Gray Detweiler, George Washington's Chinaware (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1982), 114, 118.

William Armstrong, "Some New Washington Relics. I. From the Collection of Mrs. B.W. Kennon," The Century Magazine 40/1 (May 1890): 21.
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