Earthenware Dish From Moustiers, Early 18th Century.

This very beautiful dish is characteristic of the “Bérain” decorations produced in the first quarter of the 18th century in Moustiers... Eric Amourdedieu, in the book of the Académie de Moustiers: “Moustiers earthenware from the 17th to the 19th century century", writes about Bérain-style decorations: "Bérain-style decoration, inspired by the ornamentalist Jean I Bérain, found applications in many areas of decorative arts from the end of the 17th century and throughout the first half of the 18th century: marquetry (tortoiseshell by André Charles Boulle), tapestry (Gobelins)… and of course, ceramics. This majestic decoration is characterized by its symmetry around a central figure surrounded by interlacing plays of light lace, in the spirit of the Italian Renaissance. We sometimes find flat areas with geometric patterns (crossworks). The compositions are decorated with busts, caryatids inspired by Antiquities, and precious canopies. It can also include animals (monkeys, birds, etc.) and grotesque or mythological characters which add a touch of fantasy. In the field of ceramics, he enjoyed considerable success in Moustiers, where several major pieces were produced by the Clérissy factory in the first quarter of the 18th century. » The decor is painted in blue monochrome. Among the volutes, curves, counter-curves and other arabesques, under a canopy made up of a trellis and a drape, there is a central character standing, on a pedestal, framed on either side by a bust resting on a sheath. Slightly hollow and contoured, this oblong-shaped dish is decorated on the wing with an ironwork frieze and three or four parallel threads along the rim. In very good general condition, this dish shows some wear to the enamel on the edge. Early 18th century period, Moustiers attributed to the Clérissy factory. Dimensions 39cm x 28.5cm.