A charger, late 19th century

Details

WILLIAM DE MORGAN (1839-1917)
A charger, late 19th century
glazed and ruby lustre-decorated ceramic
Painted with figures aboard a galleon ship upon a swirling sea, the underside painted with eight panels of serpents alternated by fields of crescents, surrounding a band of botehs centered by a sunburst
14 3/8 in. (36.5 cm.) diameter, 2 in. (5.1 cm.) deep

Provenance

Anonymous sale; Christie's, South Kensington, 3 March 2000, lot 3.
Acquired by Ann and Gordon Getty from the above.

Special Notice

Please note this lot will be moved to Christie’s Fine Art Storage Services (CFASS in Red Hook, Brooklyn) at 5pm on the last day of the sale. Lots may not be collected during the day of their move to Christie’s Fine Art Storage Services. Please consult the Lot Collection Notice for collection information. This sheet is available from the Bidder Registration staff, Purchaser Payments or the Packing Desk and will be sent with your invoice.

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Elizabeth Seigel Vice President, Specialist, Head of Private and Iconic Collections

eseigel@christies.com +1 212 484 4812

Lot Essay

William De Morgan frequently employed ship motifs as a pun on the idea of 'craftsmanship'. A design for a six-inch tile depicting a galleon from the same perspective, its sails and pennants in the same configuration and the sea beneath it forming near-identical waves, was given to the Victoria and Albert Museum (accession no. E.819-1917) by Evelyn de Morgan in 1917. A tile executed to this design is held in the De Morgan Collection, Barnsley (object no. C.WDM.T0612). The motif is recorded as having been designed prior to 1888, the year in which De Morgan and Halsey Ricardo entered into partnership to operate the Sands End Pottery in Fulham.

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