A Bow porcelain Knife and Fork, circa 1754-58
This large Bow knife and fork are painted in underglaze blue with hatched foliage, stylised strapwork and lambrequins. Much utilised by Saint-Cloud earlier in the century, this style of decoration is loosely derived on the broderie ornaments of the designer Jean Berain (1640-1711) and his followers. The knife has a curved steel blade, and the fork has three tines on a steel baluster stem. Silver ferrules.
Provenance: An English Private Collection.
Condition: The fork is perfect, with no damage or restoration. The knife haft has two 1.5 cm hairlines. There is also a small hole in the knife haft, probably caused by a piece of grit or other impurity being ejected from the clay during the firing process. The steel fittings are good and sharp.
Dimensions: Length of knife 27.6 cm (including blade); Length of fork 22.2 cm (including tines)
Bow Porcelain: The Collection formed by Geoffrey Freeman, A. Gabszewicz & G. Freeman (Lund Humphries, 1982).
A Review of Bow and Worcester Knife and Fork Hafts, Tony Stevenson (ECC Transactions, vol. 13, no. 3, 1989).
Cutlery: From Gothic to Art Deco – The J. Hollander Collection, Jan van Trigt (Petraco-Pandora NV, 1999).