Delft Earthenware Plate With A Blue Monochrome Design, De Grieksche A, 1701–1735

Delft earthenware plate with a humorous inscription in French, decorated in shades of blue, De Grieksche A, 1701–1735

Delftware plate with a humorous inscription in French, produced at the De Grieksche A factory between 1701 and 1735. It bears the mark of Adriaen van Rijsselbergh on the reverse.

Against a white tin-glazed background, the center features a couplet in cursive script, surmounted by the underlined title “Air: Vous m’entendez bien.” The rim is decorated with stylized flowers and leafy scrollwork. This type of piece with an inscription is called a “talking plate.”

The couplet refers to a wife who seeks from her “dear friend” the pleasures her husband denies her. The refrain “vous m’entendez bien” underscores the risqué implication. The title indicates the tune to which the verse was meant to be sung.

Inscription, with standardized spelling and punctuation:

Tune: You hear me well

A woman who sees that such a husband
Deprives her of the sweetest pleasures,
Goes to satisfy herself,
Well then,
With her dear friend,
You hear me well.

Diameter: 23 cm.
Height: 3 cm.

Condition: small chips and loss of enamel around the rim, as well as slight superficial scratches in the center.