Pair of flowered Limoges porcelain coolers, early 20th century

Limoges Porcelain, mark. 

Pair of white background Limoges porcelain coolers. Polychrome enamel ornamentation representing flowers bouquets of roses, forget-me-not, blue and purple gerbera daisies, visible on each face of the coolers and in small size beneath the handles. Gilt highlights in C-scrolls shape forming reserves and surrounding flower bouquets. Gilt highlights also visible on the handles and with stylized foliage scrolls on the neck and the feet.
Mark « Limoges » beneath the pair of coolers, in blue letters.
Work realized early 20th century.

French Limoges porcelain was born with the kaolin discovery in France at Saint-Yrieix, in 1768. From 1771, Massié, associated to the Grellet brothers, built a company to create porcelain. The Count of Artois, owner of the Limoges viscount, reinforced the manufacture protection between 1773 and 1777 which became “Royal Manufacture of Porcelains from France”. Some services, vases and utilitarian pieces are manufactured. However, after some financial difficulties, the manufacture was bought by Louis XVI in 1784 and became the Sevres subsidiary company, already royal manufacture. Thus, the porcelain is very white, beautiful and transparent with a thin and smooth overlay for creating good quality items.
Circa 1788, Grellet was replaced by Alluaud who released the manufacture from the Sevres influence to create original pieces. During the 19^th century, production became industrial and many workshops closed or gathered to survive. Thus, only the main houses continued to produce porcelain as the Pouyat’s one or the Haviland’s one.

Still today, manufactories continue to produce Limoges porcelain, very researched for its paste quality and for its decors.

Source :
G. Le Duc et H. Curtil, Marques et signatures de la porcelaine française, éd. Charles Massin, non daté, p.46-48