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The last of four breast-shaped bowls, made by the Sèvres manufactory for Queen Marie-Antoinette's dairy at the Château de Rambouillet, has just been found more than two centuries after its last known appearance. Discovered during the inventory of an estate at the Galerie Meyer, a Parisian art dealer, it will be put up for auction at the Hôtel Drouot on 26 November, with an estimate of 1 to 2 million euros. According to The History Blog, this bowl is the only one of the four still in private hands.
A royal commission for the Rambouillet dairy
King Louis XVI commissioned from the Sèvres manufactory a 108-piece service intended for the queen, who wished to serve the fresh products of her dairy with it. This decoration forms part of the pastoral fantasy Marie-Antoinette cultivated at Rambouillet, far from the etiquette of Versailles.
Only 65 pieces were ultimately produced, delivered to the château in 1787 and 1788. Among them were four "jattes téton", bowls shaped like a breast set on a tripod of goats' heads, the queen's favourite animal on her farm.
A porcelain object with antique origins
The bowl, in a creamy rose-tinted white, bears a realistically coloured nipple. Its base is decorated with foliate scrolls and egg-and-dart friezes on an ochre-orange ground. The model draws its inspiration from mastoi, breast-shaped cups used at Greek banquets, the symposia.
A persistent legend claims these bowls were moulded from the queen's breasts. According to The History Blog, this is not the case: they were not cast from anyone's body, least of all Marie-Antoinette's.
From the dairy to public collections
According to a handwritten note found with the bowl, it passed from the Rambouillet dairy to the Marquise de Chanaleilles (1784-1867), sister of a lady-in-waiting to the Duchesse de Berry. She passed it on to her grandson, General Ferdinand de Salles (1831-1925), who sold it to the Galerie Meyer.
Three of the four bowls are now in public collections: two at the Musée national de la Céramique in Sèvres, with aqua and lavender grounds, and one at the Museo Duca di Martina in Naples, with a pale blue ground. The bowl just found stands out for its orange ground, clearly different from the pastels of its three sisters.
An auction under scrutiny
The bowl will be offered at the Hôtel Drouot on 26 November, with a pre-sale estimate of between 1,000,000 and 2,000,000 euros. The blog notes that a foreign buyer would very likely be refused an export permit, suggesting that an effort will be made to acquire it for a French institution.
For lovers of eighteenth-century porcelain, this sale is a rare opportunity to see up close an object of which nearly all known examples are already in museums.
Sèvres and Rambouillet, two places to visit
The Musée national de la Céramique in Sèvres holds two of the breast bowls and offers insight into the royal manufactory's production in the eighteenth century, when soft-paste porcelain was one of Europe's great achievements.
The Château de Rambouillet, where the queen's dairy once stood, remains the setting in which to appreciate this taste for rural life in the royal gardens and buildings of the late Ancien Régime.
Frequently asked questions
What is a breast bowl (jatte téton)?
It is a porcelain bowl shaped like a breast, decorated with a coloured nipple and set on a tripod of goats' heads. Commissioned by Louis XVI for Marie-Antoinette's dairy at Rambouillet, four examples existed.
Was the bowl moulded from the queen's breast?
No. According to The History Blog, this legend is false: the bowl was not cast from anyone's body. The model is inspired by the mastoi, breast-shaped Greek cups.
Where can the other breast bowls be seen?
Two are at the Musée national de la Céramique in Sèvres and one at the Museo Duca di Martina in Naples. The fourth, recently found, was until now in private hands.
When and where will the bowl be sold?
It will be auctioned at the Hôtel Drouot in Paris on 26 November, with an estimate of 1 to 2 million euros. A foreign buyer would risk being refused an export permit.
Sources
- Long-lost Marie Antoinette breast bowl found — The History Blog
Original summary written with the help of artificial intelligence from the sources cited, checked automatically, then translated from the French original. Information and quotations belong to their authors. Read the French original.
