France, Samson, 19th centuryThe group describing a scene near a pond with a couple of young figures, he seated while fishing, she standing by his side with a basket with fishes, the setting enriched by a bridge and a fence from which a fabric hangs and a cartouche with the inscription 彩潤堂製 (Cairun tai zhi, “Made for the Hall enriched with brilliance”).51 x 42 x 29 cmProvenance: Italian private collection.This porcelain sculpture rather faithfully reproduces a composition by Francois Boucher published in a print by Gabriel Huquier around the mid-18th century and included in the well-known Scenes de la vie chinois series. An example of this print is in the Metropolitan Museum of New York (inv. 53.600.1019 (3)).The inscription in Chinese characters refers to a rare mark found on porcelain from the Qianlong period.