Rare plate, Qianlong c.1740, with Dutch arms of Van Bergen
Van der Grijp accollé with Van Beaumont
The extraordinarily detailed allegorical wedding scene on this plate almost certainly derives from a 17th century book frontispiece, as yet undiscovered, and was used on a small group of services commemorating Dutch marriages of which three are recorded with armorials while three others have marriage motifs or initials.
As the others in this series, this plate is exceptionally finely decorated using ink colour (grisaille) to represent the hatching lines of the original engraving, while the figures are delicately shaded in flesh tones. The inner rim and lacy outer arabesque scrollwork are richly gilded in the Meissen style, popular in Europe from 1725.
The arms displayed on the pillars either side of the central rotunda are those of Johannes van Bergen van der Grijp (left) and Elisabeth Arnoudina van Beaumont (right) who married 1736/7, probably in Batavia. The Latin inscription over the arch translates as ‘My love for you will always be strong and true
In 1734, at the age of 21, Johannes van Bergen van der Grijp followed his father into VOC service, serving mainly in Batavia as a merchant from where he almost certainly ordered this porcelain service for himself and his wife Elisabeth, the daughter of a patrician family whose father had been a senior merchant in the Cape Colony. He returned home a wealthy man in 1749 and they settled in Leiden, building an art collection which was displayed in their country house. Johannes died in 1784, leaving his armorial service to his eldest daughter Gijsbertha Petronella, and it is described and itemised in an inventory taken after his death.
See further information in Newsletter No. 5 – available on the Newsletter page.
Reference : Dr Jochem Kroes, Chinese Armorial Porcelain for the Dutch Market, pp.275-83 for this and several other services with the same scene.
Condition : Very fine. Pristine perfect and extremely bright; the gilding in mint condition.
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