Lot n° 15
Estimation :
15000 - 20000
EUR
Result with fees
Result
: 17 550EUR
Large hard porcelain vase. - Lot 15
Large hard porcelain vase.
Manufacture royale; Berlin, 1863.
Ovoid model, with side handles ending in a griffin's head on a matt gold ground, the neck reveals a frieze of oak leaves in matt gold on a satin-finish gold ground, the central part is decorated on one side with a large polychrome rectangular scene depicting Babelsberg castle surrounded by its gardens and on the other side with an exterior view of the Kronprinz palace in Berlin after works by the painter Carl Daniel
Feydanck (1811-1887), bordered by a gold frieze on a blue background. The lower part is decorated with a large frieze of oak leaves in matt gold, ending on a square base with a satin-finish gold background.
Slight age-related wear to the neck, title faded, but overall very good condition.
Mark: KPM, Berlin (period 1849-1870), N°III -
1863.
With base: H.: 68.5 cm - W.: 38 cm.
Historical background
Babelsberg Palace, built in Potsdam between 1834 and 1849, was the summer residence of Prince Wilhelm of Prussia (later Wilhelm I).
Wilhelm I (1797-1888), son of King Frederick William III (1770- 1840). Two other palaces had already been built for his brothers, Charlottenhof for Prince Frederick William (later Frederick-
Wilhelm IV (1795-1840) and Glienicke, the residence of Prince Charles (1801-1883). Babelsberg was a completely modern building designed in the fashionable Gothic style by architect Charles-Frédéric Schinkel (1781-1841), on a vast estate overlooking
Glienicke. Wilhelm's brother, Prince Frederick William, came to the throne in 1840 and took possession of the castle, which was transformed by Ludwig Persius and Heinrich Strack. A large ballroom was added with an elaborate facade, towers and a belvedere; some of these later additions can be seen in the depiction on one side of our vase. See Gert Streidt and Klaus Frahm for a full discussion of the history and development of Schloß
Babelsberg, Potsdam, Palaces and Gardens of the Hohenzollern, Cologne, 1996, pp. 198-213. The other side of the vase depicts the Kronprinz Palace in Berlin. The palace is a symbol of German history over the last four centuries. Originally designed as a private residence for State Secretary Johann Martitz, the building was rebuilt in 1732 in Baroque style by Johann Philipp Gerlach for King Frederick II of Prussia.
His grand-nephew, King Frederick William III (1770-1840), made it his principal residence, commissioning the architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel to fit out several rooms, as well as constructing the Princess Palace, an adjacent building linked by a footbridge visible in this image. The residence was subsequently occupied by the Prussian Crown Princes and their families until the fall of the Hohenzollern family.
Reference:
A closely related vase on a white ground enhanced with gold motifs, presented on a porcelain base, can be compared with our example sold by the Coutau-Begarie firm on December 20, 2021 under no. 236, bearing no. I and dated 1861. The latter could also be paired with one representing a view of the Nouveau Palais and Sanssouci, sold at Christie's on October 7, 1996 under lot 304. This pair is known to have been presented by Emperor Frederick III to the physician of his wife, née Princess Victoria of Great Britain, after the birth of their son, William (later William II) in 1859. Another vase of the same shape and decorated with the same view of Babelsberg Castle was sold at Sotheby's, London, on July 9, 1997, as lot 197.
All the large vases of this quality produced by the KPM manufactory were official commissions, often presented as gifts by Emperor Wilhelm I (1797-1888).
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