A maker of exemplary European ceramics for hundreds of years, Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres has produced porcelain of the highest quality since 1740.
The factory enjoyed royal patronage from its earliest days, and its most prominent patrons in the late 1700s — King Louis XV of France and his mistress, Madame de Pompadour — commissioned some of the period’s most elegant and striking pieces (only the truly wealthy could afford porcelain at this time). The company was originally established in Vincennes but was moved at the request of Madame de Pompadour, in 1756, to Sèvres, near Versailles, so that its operations would be closer to her château.
Sèvres became a mighty and much-revered factory working under a special grant from King Louis XV — the company’s owner as of 1759 and whose abundance of orders for special state gifts put financial strain on the company. Madame de Pompadour is said to have commissioned Sèvres to create an entire indoor garden of porcelain botanicals, for example.
While Sèvres gained a sterling reputation for its soft-paste porcelain wares, the company was late in entering into the production of hard-paste porcelain.
Hard-paste porcelain is the most common type of Chinese porcelain, then a widely exported and profitable product that was not made in Europe until the 18th century. The resources at Sèvres were largely relegated to meeting the demands of Louis XV, and secondly, it did not acquire the secret formula for hard-paste porcelain until 1761.
Until it obtained the coveted secrets behind hard-paste porcelain from a chemist named Pierre-Antoine Hannong — and, years later, gained access to the elusive raw materials to make hard-paste porcelain — Sèvres produced soft-paste porcelain for decades that was widely celebrated but is comparatively a far weaker type as opposed to the hard-paste productions of the company’s rival, Meissen, in Saxony, the first to produce true porcelain outside of Asia.
The artisans at Sèvres applied the rarest and most difficult-to-produce colors to their decorative objects and dinner services. One such color, the bright bleu de roi, became the manufacturer’s signature shade and is found on many of their objects. Sèvres also experimented with rarely glazed or unglazed works that bore no decoration at all — bisque porcelain, French for “biscuit,” refers to unadorned white porcelain sculptures made at Sèvres that resemble white marble after being kiln-fired.
Sèvres marks were applied over the glaze or rendered with cuts by a sharp tool — authentic Sèvres porcelain is most commonly marked with two interlaced Ls that are painted in blue and enclose a third letter. Painters and potters were tasked with affixing marks to record their role in the creation of a particular piece, and as a lot of these artisans’ names are recorded in archival factory materials — and there is also much to be learned at the Sèvres museum — it’s likely that you can accurately identify your Sèvres piece.
Find antique and vintage Manufacture Nationale de Sèvres vases, urns, sculptures and more on 1stDibs.
Murano Glass Table Lamp with Zanfirico and Polychrome Twisted Filigree Detail
By Ercole Barovier
Located in Cincinnati, OH
This handblown Italian Murano glass table lamp has an organic double gourd or squash form which rests upon a black glass pedestal base decorated with gold wash. The body of the piece...
Brass
19th Century Sèvres Style Porcelain Table Lamps Decorated by Marie Demonceaux
Located in Cincinnati, OH
These exceptional matched Sèvres Style French porcelain vasiform pedestal table lamps were hand-painted by Marie Demonceaux (1850-1899). The vessels' flattened ovoid bodies are pain...
Bronze
Vintage Wildwood Chinoiserie English Tea Tin Table Lamp, Artemis Studios Shade
By Wildwood Lamp Company
Located in Cincinnati, OH
This vintage Wildwood table lamp features a rectangular lithographed tin made in England depicting Chinoiserie scenes finished in shades of red, gold,...
Brass, Tin
Wishon-Harrell Stoneware Table Lamp with Hand Carved Wheat Motif
By Wishon-Harrell
Located in Cincinnati, OH
This fantastic stoneware table lamp was made in Muncie, Indiana by the talented team of Jim Wishon and Jerry Harrell. The lamp was thrown by Wishon and has an ovoid form with a cylindrical neck resembling that of a bottle. The piece features three large groupings of wheat stalks which were carved by Harrell. The lamp is finished in neutral beige hues with the carved decoration executed in a deeper shade of brown. The piece is signed by both artisans at the back near the cord along with the location of their Muncie Indiana workshop. The felt-lined foot is 6" in diameter and the body is approximately 10" across as measured at its widest point. The lamp comes with a pleated fabric drum shade manufactured by Kichler. As seen in the accompanying photographs the neutral color of the fabric complements the glaze on the lamp while enabling the darker carved...
Ceramic
Moorcroft Art Pottery 'Fuchsia' Footed Lamp with Lightolier Glass Reflector Bowl
By Lightolier, Moorcroft Pottery
Located in Cincinnati, OH
This striking English art pottery lamp was made by the renowned Moorcroft Pottery company of Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire. Initially with James Macintyre & Co., innovative ceramist William Moorcroft founded his own firm in 1913. Underwritten by retailer Liberty London, the company went from strength to strength and was granted a Royal Warrant by Queen Mary in 1928, leading them to include the phrase ‘Potter To HM The Queen’ on their paper labels as well as in their impressed marks. William's son Walter joined the firm in 1935 and took over management and design responsibilities upon the death of his father in 1945. Moorcroft remains in business today with early pieces by William and Walter being particularly sought after. This Walter Moorcroft signed lamp has a traditional pear or bottle vase form which has been decorated in the 'Fuchsia' pattern. The body of the lamp has a variegated blue/blue-green background featuring Moorcroft's distinctive slip-trailing technique. The leaves and blossoms have been finished in bright jewel tones. The body of the lamp has been joined to a metal base having a milgrain edge and four scrolling feet. The top of the lamp has a simple metal cap topped by a decorative foliate band. The piece retains its original Lightolier reflector bowl, patented by Jacob Samuel Hamel in March of 1950. The reflector bowl has a frosted body which attaches to the lamp by Virtue of three screws. The lamp comes complete with a silk shade manufactured by Royal Knight...
Metal
Early 20th Century Amphora Enameled Pottery Vase
Located in Cincinnati, OH
This striking enameled pottery vase was made by Amphora and is decorated with stylized floral decoration set against a textured ground made up of variegated blue enamel paint on a me...
Pottery
Restored Art Deco Table Lamp, Cobalt Glass, Opal Lampshade, Czech, 1920s
By Moser
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Maker: Moser - Karlovy Vary This luxurious Art Deco table lamp is an exceptional piece from Czechoslovakia dating back to the 1920s. It is a work by the renowned manufacturer Moser ...
Opal
French Art Deco Table Lamp by Simonet Frères
By Simonet Freres
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
French Art Deco big table lamp from 1930 by Simonet frères. The glass is patinated and color Sepia, the base is in nickeled bronze. The floral and elegant decor of the glass is ty...
Bronze
Art deco table lamp with palme koenig glass shade and glass sticks vienna 1920s
Located in Wien, Au
Art deco table lamp with palme koenig glass shade and glass sticks vienna 1920s Brass polished and stove enameled The glass sticks are replaced ( new )
Brass
Finnish Design Art Deco Table Lamp with Opaline Glass, 1920s
Located in Kangasala, FI
An elegant example of Finnish Design from the Art Deco period, this table lamp was manufactured in Finland during the 1920s. Executed in brass with a beautifully woven birch bark co...
Brass
blue art deco 20th century ceramic table lamp by Edmond Lachenal 1940 design
By Edmond Lachenal
Located in Neuilly-en- sancerre, FR
Edmond Lachenal Blue art deco ceramic table lamp Original 1940 design Signed Original perfect condition Electric system is new Ceramic height 27 cm Height with electrical syst...
Ceramic
Art Deco Table Lamp with Original Painted Glass Shade Vienna Around 1920s
Located in Wien, Au
Art Deco table lamp with original painted glass shade vienna around 1920s Brass polished and stove enameled.
Brass
