La Tronche Plate, 18th Century.

This beautiful earthenware plate is decorated in the center with a Chinese commonly called "The Hunchback of Saint Ferjus". It was created in La Tronche, a town near Grenoble, by a potter from Claude Potié's workshop. To describe our plate, we cannot replace Claude Ferradou, who during a conference at the Académie Delphinale described one of its little sisters, here is what he tells us about it: "With his hidden eye, he watches over his little garden of foliage and small flowers, with its two manganese rocks, under a butterfly that flutters, surrounded by the double circular border that closes it. On the other, always open, he observes from the side, without seeming to, the World which is agitated and has changed so much since he has been looking at it... He was born a long time ago one morning in the year 1772, on a bed of raw enamel the color of milk and without stencil, from a few quick brush strokes of a faience worker from the workshop of Claude POTIE at La Petite Tronche, just before his passage to the great fire. " The closing of the last faience workshop of La Tronche is dated November 30, 1830, the day of the departure of Antoine POTIE, master faience maker (1774-1859) who had taken over the factory from his uncle François since 1812. In very good condition, it nevertheless presents some small enamel jumps on the edge. Period 18th century. Diameter 21.8 cm.