A grisaille-enamelled 'Mythological subject' tea service


18th centuryComprising: a teapot and cover with stand; a set of twelve tea bowls and saucers; six coffee cups; a bowl, a spoon tray; a cream jug; a tea poy; and a small dish, each finely enamelled with a central depiction of Jupiter upon an eagle brandishing lightning, with scrolled cartouches and Baroque designs to the foliate rim.The largest: 21cm (8 1/4in) wide (40).
|The depiction of Jupiter is taken from a set of 18th century engravings by Claude Audran, 'Les Douze mois Grotesques', in which each month of the year is associated with a Roman divinity. Jupiter is representative of July.