Covered Bowl and Tray (écuelle ronde tournée et plateau ovale)

Aristocrats would have used this matching set of porcelain dishes to consume soups and broths during their daily toilette, a lengthy dressing ritual performed before an audience. Using the two handles, a person would drink from the bowl and, when finished, cover it with the lid to keep the liquid warm and free from powders, which were liberally applied to an individual’s hair, face, and body during the dressing ritual. The plateau, or large saucer, was for bread – toasted or soaked in broth -- that accompanied the hot, restorative liquids. This particular "écuelle et plateau" features a pink pointillé ground with two reserves, or areas reserved for imagery, on each separate piece. All reserves have a white ground and feature baskets of assorted flowers.

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Provenance

Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.

Collection of William T. or Henry Walters, Baltimore, before 1909 [date and mode of acquisition unknown] [1]; by bequest to the Walters Art Museum, 1931.

[1]. This piece is visible in a photograph preserved in the Walters Art Museum Archives of a display of European porcelains in the Walters Art Gallery that was taken around the time Henry Walters opened the Gallery in 1909.