Royal Worcester (established Worcester, England, 1751)
Cup and Saucer, 1879-1884
Glazed porcelain, 8.4 x 12.1 cm (3 5/16 x 4 3/4 in.)
This fine, white porcelain cup and saucer is decorated with small birds in flight. The birds are vibrantly multicolored: pink, orange, blue, turquoise, yellow, black, pink, and purple. The three on the cup appear to be diving down towards the three soaring, hovering birds on the saucer. All of them are small and equally spaced around the design, leaving a significant amount of white, translucent porcelain to admire. The saucer is deep and bordered by a wide, dark blue band and decorative gold scallops around its piecrust shaped lip. The cup is tall, narrow, and fluted with the same border design.
Yellow Room
Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.