Cane handle

Date1749-1750

Artist/Maker Chelsea Porcelain Manufactory 1745-1769

Attributed to Joseph Willems

OriginEngland, London

MediumSoft-paste porcelain

DimensionsH: 2 13/16"; D: 1 13/16"

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1962-71

DescriptionCane handle in the form of a girl's upraised head tilted to the right. Her brown hair with black streaks is gathered in a knot from which come several locks and garlands of flowers molded in relief and painted red, pink, blue, yellow, and green in overglaze.

Late triangle or early raised anchor period.Label TextIn spite of their vulnerable position at the head of a walking stick, a surprising number of porcelain cane handles have survived. The model for this example has been attributed on stylistic grounds to the Belgian, Joseph Willems, who prepared models at Chelsea for about eighteen years. If so, this was among the first pieces he produced there. The paste suggests a late triangle period, and Willems reached Chelsea no earlier than 1748.Inscription(s)NoMark(s)NoProvenanceEx coll: M.G. Kaufman, Chicago