"A 19th Century Chinese Famille Rose Style Samson Porcelain Ginger Jar Lamp"
A 19th Century Chinese Famille Rose Style Samson Porcelainvase and coverOrmolu-mounted in lamp
Polychromed design of flowers and foliages and branches and vases, theginger jar on a white background.
French Louis XV Style ormolu-mounts in original gilding
Together with its original used shade, surmounted on its top by anormolu flame
Louis XV Style
Circa 1870
Famille rose porcelain features polychrome decorations dominated by pinktones.The decoration is applied overglaze, that is, after a first firing ofthe porcelain, which is then covered with a transparent glaze. It is during asecond firing, known as a low-fire firing (800°C), that the colors are set.
This type of decoration appeared during the reign of Emperor Yong-zhen(1723-1736) and developed during the reign of Emperor Qianlong (1736-1796). Itsorigins are closely linked to the history of trade between East and West in the17th and 18th centuries. Indeed, it was a Dutch chemist named Andreas Cassiuswho discovered in 1650 the chemical formula for producing pink glazes: mineralpurple, later called "Cassius purple," a precipitate obtained fromgold salt. China quickly acquired this formula—purple became the "foreigncolor"—and then used pink tones for porcelain intended for the domesticmarket, but also and especially for export products.Famille Rose porcelain very frequently features a plant motif composedof flowers and bouquets.
The "Manufacture de Porcelaines, faïences et terres-cuites"des Samson (four general) is the best example in the field of fire arts of theinterest shown in the 19th century and in the first half of the 20th century tostyles from the past. the 18th century as the Middle Ages or the Renaissance,and for all exoticism, Spain as Saxony or China. With a very rich, variedproduction and excellent quality, the Samsons were geniuses of imitation andthe best reproducers of ancient pieces in terms of ceramic art.
Edmé Samson (1810-1891), a ceramic decorator established in 1845 at 7rue Vendôme in Paris, bought his white porcelain from various Parisianmanufacturers. His son Emile (1837-1913) who succeeded him, began to makereproductions of old porcelain.
Present at the Exhibition of Fine Arts applied to Industry in 1863,Emile Samson was particularly noted for his porcelain imitations of «OldJapan». He installed a factory in 1864 in Montreuil-sous-Bois, near Paris andwas very successful at the Universal Exhibition of Paris in 1867 with hisimitations of Saxony, China and Japan, all of very good quality.
At the 1889 World Exhibition, Samson & Cie was renowned for beingspecialized in large pieces of both faience and porcelain, whose models werefound in the largest French and foreign museums, such as the Louvre or theVictoria & Albert Museum in London. Emile joined in 1891 with his son Léon(1868-1928), under the name of Samson & Fils, which gave a large extensionto the manufacture, employing a large number of workers and decorators. Inaddition to the manufacture and decoration of these porcelain, the Samsonmanufacture also had a bronze workshop for their superb frames.
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