Late 18th, Superb Fine Earthenware Spices Display Stand, With Turkish Characters

Tableware
Late 18th century

Superb fine earthenware Statuary Group, with 2 Turkish characters presenting offerings, especially in exotic fruits. One, the younger servant, kneels before the other, his master, richly dressed in Oriental style, with a rich turban on his head and a sword at his belt.

Particular care is meticulously brought to details of the textiles of their clothes, openwork in the manner of taffeta and lace. The faces and expressions, the movement of the actors, are also very well expressed by the excellence of this sculpture and the quality of the ceramics

A small covered part, with a lid, at their feet must have been used to hold precious spices, and it is easy to imagine that, on each side, the 2 circular reserves of pedestal, in front of the figures, must have been received 2 woven baskets, filled with refined fruits, and to accommodate compartments for salt and pepper.

The subject is obviously reminiscent of the European colonial powers thema, the inspiration of the 'Turqueries' designating a work of art derived from the orientalist fashion developed in Western Europe during 16th and 18th centuries, which represents or imitates different aspects of Turkish art and culture.
During this period, many Western European countries developed a fascination with the exotic and still relatively unknown culture of Turkey, which was at the centre of Ottoman Empire, those one being the only external powerfull military threat on Europe.

"Late 17th century, in Europe, the terror that the Turks had long inspired gradually gave way to a real fascination. Travelogues devoted to the Ottoman territories, translations of literary works such as The Thousand and One Nights, a splendid show offered by the ambassadors of the Sublime Porte: so many catalysts that would inspire artists, to the delight of the ruling elites, a fabulous vision of this distant world. The subject is explored in a thematic approach, in a flexible chronological framework leading from the first contacts between Europe and Ottomans after the fall of Constantinople in 1453 to the apogee of the genre in 18th century, and then its replacement by Orientalism in the 19th century."

The ceramic statue is very delicate and in very good condition (a slight and unspeakable restoration to one of the corners of the lid and to one of the fingers of the largest figure, standing, has been carried out by our professional workshop).

Dimensions 30cm height *21cm width and 13cm depth