Terms and conditions of use
WEDGWOOD, Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent (manufacturer), WEDGWOOD & BENTLEY, Staffordshire (manufacturer)
Bacchanal, medallion
(1777-1780)
Medium
stoneware (blue jasper)
Measurements
1.1 × 11.4 × 8.6 cm
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Presented through The Art Foundation of Victoria by Mr Keith M. Deutsher, Founder Benefactor, 1993
Gallery location
18th Century Decorative Arts & Paintings Gallery
Level 2, NGV International
About this work
This medallion, suitable for inlaying in a fine cabinet, depicts the Classical subject of putti and young satyrs, seen through the eyes of the seventeenth century, the source for this design being the sculptor François Duquesnoy (1594–1643). The development of jasper was the outstanding technical achievement of Wedgwood’s manufactory. The material was developed to harmonise with the style and light colours of Neoclassical interiors and was particularly inspired by antique carved gemstones. ‘Gems are the fountain head of fine and beautiful composition, and we cannot employ ourselves too near the fountain head of taste,’ Wedgwood wrote in 1769.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
Staffordshire, England
Inscription
impressed in rear c.: WEDGWOOD / & BENTLEY
Accession Number
D8-1993
Department
International Decorative Arts
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of Digitisation Champion Ms Carol Grigor through Metal Manufactures Limited
Physical description
Horizontal oval medallion in solid slate blue jasper with Bacchanal of five putti and young satyrs, executed in high relief in white.