Saucer

Status

Not on view

Label Text

After the Revolutionary War, George Washington, the Marquis de Lafayette, and their families exchanged numerous gifts and tokens of affection, perpetuating the warm friendship forged by the General and his “adopted son,” as Lafayette styled himself. According to family tradition, Lafayette gave this tea set, of which a teapot, sugar bowl, and saucer survive, to Martha Washington’s granddaughter, Eliza Parke Custis Law.

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Date1760

Maker Sèvres porcelain factory (French, 1756 - present)

Geography Made - France

Medium/TechniquePorcelain

DimensionsOverall (H x W x D): 1 3/16 in. x 4 3/4 in. x 4 3/4 in. (3.02 cm x 12.07 cm x 12.07 cm)

Credit LineGift of Mary Hobart and John Gibbons, 1985

Object numberH-3011/C

DescriptionCircular saucer with flaring sides on an integral foot ring decorated in overglaze polychrome enamels and gilt. The center of the well features a pink rose at center. The interior sides of the well are covered with rows of alternating pink and blue flowers. A gilded, double-intertwined leafy vine atop a blue enamel line encircles the top and base of the interior sides. The interior rim is decorated with a gilded (dent-de-loup) border.
Published ReferencesChristine H.Messing, John B. Rudder, and Dian Windham Shaw. A Son and His Adoptive Father: The Marquis de Lafayette and George Washington (Mount Vernon, VA: Mount Vernon Ladies Association, 2006), 44, 47, 72.

MarkingsOverglaze mark painted on underside of saucer (in blue): factory mark or cipher of intertwined Ls. The underglaze mark on the underside of the saucer near the foot ring is covered by a red-bordered label.

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