vase

During the 17th century, Britain’s East India Companies brought more and more tea, spices, porcelain, and lacquer to Europe. Artists and craftsmen there began to make objects that invoked the exotic spirit of the East without merely imitating the Asian imports. Some of them were made of slightly translucent white glass that resembled expensive Chinese porcelain. Independent decorators often painted and gilded both glass and porcelain. The Europeans’ chinoiserie style of decoration featured gilding, asymmetrical forms, unusual perspectives, and Oriental motifs. This covered vase was part of a garniture, a group of flower vases and covered urns that often graced the mantel of a fashionable drawing room. It is decorated with a large formal bouquet of brilliantly enameled flowers.