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Cupid: C.933-1928

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Object information

Current Location: In storage

Titles

Cupid

Maker(s)

Production: Wilson, Robert (d. 1801) (Possibly)
Production: David Wilson (Possibly)

Entities

Categories

Description

Lead-glazed earthenware painted in enamels; standing Cupid holding a dove, on a cylindrical pedestal supported on a square base

Cream earthenware, covered with very slightly blue tinted lead-glaze, and painted in turquoise, yellow, flesh pink, greyish-pink, beige, a little red, reddish-brown, brown, and black enamels. The square base has shallow sides, incurved fluted sides and a small platform on top. The glazed underside has sloping sides and a closed centre with a large round ventilation hole. Cupid stands on a cylindrical greyish-pink pedestal with mouldings on its lower and upper edges and four swags of flowers round the sides. He has brown hair, rosy cheeks, and green and pink wings. He is nude apart from a green and yellow drape, which conceals his genitals and hangs down to the ground behind him.. A brown quiver of arrows is held on to his back by black straps across the front of his torso. His right hand is raised to the top of his head to hold a dove (now missing) and another pale beige dove is perching on his left hand which he holds close to his body. The base is decorated with three horizontal reddish-brown lines, and its fluted sides are striped in turquoise.

Notes

History note: Sotheby's, 12 June, 1906, part of lot 256; purchased by S.G. Fenton on behalf of Dr J.W.L. Glaisher, FRS, Trinity College, Cambridge

Legal notes

Dr J. W. L. Glaisher Bequest

Measurements and weight

Height: 17.3 cm

Place(s) associated

  • Hanley ⪼ Staffordshire ⪼ England

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1928-12-07) by Glaisher, J. W. L., Dr

Dating

Late 18th or early 19th century
George III
Circa 1791 - 1810

Note

This figure was attributed tentatively to the Wilson factory in Hanley by Rackham in his Catalogue of the Glaisher Collection, 1935. This factory had formerly been Neale & Co., and was run by Robert Wilson from 1791 until shortly before his death in 1801, when his son David took over.

School or Style

Neoclassical

People, subjects and objects depicted

Components of the work

Decoration composed of enamels ( turquoise, yellow, flesh pink, greyish-pink, beige, a little red, reddish-brown, brown, and black)
Surface composed of lead-glaze ( very slightly blue tinted)
Base Depth 5.2 cm Width 5.2 cm

Materials used in production

cream Earthenware

Techniques used in production

Moulding : Cream earthenware, covered with very slightly blue tinted lead-glaze, and painted in turquoise, yellow, flesh pink, greyish-pink, beige, a little red, reddish-brown, brown, and black enamels. The glazed underside of the base has sloping sides and a closed centre with a large round ventilation hole.

Inscription or legends present

  • Text: h or n
  • Method of creation: Painted in reddish-brown enamel
  • Type: Letter

Inscription present: Rectangular white paper stick on label with dark blue lines round the left, top and right edges, and plant motifs in top corners

  • Text: No 2431/Staffordshire/figure. Boy on a/column with birds./b. at Sotheby's/June 12.1906/lot 256
  • Location: On underside of base
  • Method of creation: Hand-written in black ink
  • Type: Label

References and bibliographic entries

Identification numbers

Accession number: C.933-1928
Primary reference Number: 76406
Old object number: 2431
Stable URI

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Tuesday 15 August 2023 Last processed: Wednesday 13 December 2023

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Cupid" Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/76406 Accessed: 2024-11-05 03:42:05

Citation for Wikipedia

To cite this record on Wikipedia you can use this code snippet:

{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/object/76406 |title=Cupid |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-11-05 03:42:05|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/api/v1/objects/object-76406

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        <figcaption class="figure-caption text-info">Cupid</figcaption>
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