GALERIE NICOLAS FOURNERY

A Chinese armorial blog dish for the French / Italian market (Guérin de Tencin).Qianlong

Decorated in rouge-de-fer and gilt, with four sprays of flowers, spearheads, and at the center, the coat-of-arms of the Guérin de Tencin family enclosed within an Italian-style shield, d’or, au laurier de sinople, au chef de gueules, chargé d’une étoile (ici besabt) d’or côtoyée de deux besants de même,(here represented as a besant) . Above the chief, the cross of a commander of the Order of Malta. The arms, accompanied by the cross of profession with eight points, are circumscribed by a rosary culminating in a cross of the Order of Malta; alongside are the grapnels and banners befitting a general of the galleys of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem.

Country:
China
Period :
Qianlong (1735-1795), ca. 1745
Material:
Porcelain
Dimension:
15.55 in. x 12.59 in. (39,5 cm x 32 cm)
Status:
sold

Related works

Another service with the same decoration on the rim was done for the French market, bearing the arms of Jean-Emmanuel Guignard, Viscount of Saint-Priest (21 May 1714 – 18 October 1785), who served as intendant in Languedoc.

The service of Guérin de Tencin is painted predominantly in rouge-de-fer, likely in homage to the Order of Malta.

The Guérin de Tencin Chinese armorial order is one of five recorded for the French market for a member of the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem

Notice

Jean-Louis Guérin de Tencin was born in Grenoble, in the southeastern region of France, on December 27, 1702. His father was François II Guérin de Tencin (1676-1742), a squire, lord of Tencin, senator in the Sovereign Senate of Savoy, and president of the Parliament of Dauphiné.

He was educated and prepared for a future career in the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem. At the age of 14, he was admitted to the Langue of Provence. As a minor, he served as a page to the Grand Master of the Order, Raimondo Perellos y Rocaful. He took his duties very seriously, which paved the way for several promotions within the Order. In 1738, he was appointed Grand Cross, and in 1739, General Captain of the Galleys. The latter part of his naval career is particularly notable due to the capture of a Tripolitan galliot in 1740. In 1742, he was appointed extraordinary ambassador of the Order to the Holy See in Rome, where he served until 1749. During this time, he was also named bailiff of the Order of Malta.

A remarkable achievement during Jean-Louis de Tencin’s tenure in Rome was the acquisition of equal censorship rights for the Grand Master. Prior to 1747, censorship rights in Malta belonged to the local inquisitor and the bishop, and censored documents could only be countersigned by the representative of the Order below a demarcation line—the interiecta linea—thereby placing the Order in a subordinate position. Tencin’s diplomacy was pivotal in paving the way for the eventual introduction of printing in Malta, which could only occur once the rights of the Grand Master were fully asserted.

In Rome, Tencin formed a friendship with Cardinal Joaquín Fernandez de Portocarrero (1681-1760), a scholar, great collector, and bibliophile. The cardinal’s vast library, estimated to contain 40,000 volumes in 1741, greatly piqued Tencin’s interest, as he was already the owner of a considerable collection of books himself. This friendship proved to be invaluable in the years that followed.

When Tencin returned to Malta in 1749, he was already one of the most esteemed members of the Order and devoted his free time to cataloging his library, a task he completed in 1760. Tencin enjoyed great popularity, as evidenced by a “false dispatch” from 1758 that appeared in foreign newspapers, announcing the death of Grand Master Manuel Pinto de Fonseca and Tencin’s accession as his successor. Starting in 1760, he dedicated his energy to the creation and establishment of a public library in Malta, the first of its kind.

The compilation of the catalog of Tencin’s personal library, carried out between 1749 and 1760, is presented in three parts: a preface, the order of the catalog, and an alphabetical index of the books. The catalog is structured into several main sections, such as religion, philosophy, history, arts, and sciences. It also includes subdivisions and dedicated sections for geography, prints, and journals. This methodical organization reflects Tencin’s intellectual rigor and the diversity of his interests.

Tencin’s friend, Cardinal Portocarrero, previously mentioned, passed away in Rome in 1760, bequeathing his library and collection of scientific and mathematical instruments to the Order of Saint John. Upon learning of this, Tencin submitted a petition to the procurators of the Treasury of the Order, expressing his intention to establish a public library in Malta. He sought to obtain the late cardinal’s books under certain conditions for this purpose. Tencin’s project was accepted and approved. In 1761, he rented a house located at the corner of Strada San Giorgio and Strada della Vittoria, known as Il Forfantone. This house became Malta’s first public library, and it was in these premises that Cardinal Portocarrero’s collection was initially housed. He also obtained from King Louis XV of France the privilege of receiving a copy of all publications from the royal printing house. Tencin passed away on January 10, 1766, before the official establishment of the Bibliotheca Tenceniana in 1776, which was named in his honor.

His aunt, Claudine-Alexandrine de Tencin, known as “Madame de Tencin” (1682-1749), was a renowned woman of letters. Introduced into circles of power through her connections with Cardinal Dubois, she established one of the most famous literary salons of the time, known as La Ménagerie. Initially focused primarily on politics and finance, particularly with speculators from the Law banking system, this salon evolved into a literary hub starting in 1733. The greatest writers of the era and other notable figures frequented it, including Marivaux, Marmontel, Helvétius, Marie-Thérèse Geoffrin, and Montesquieu.

He is also the nephew of Cardinal de Tencin (1680-1758), Archbishop of Lyon and a prominent political figure under Louis XV. Jean-Louis Guérin de Tencin organized celebrations to honor his uncle’s elevation to the cardinalate. On May 13, 1739, after the singing of the Te Deum in the church dedicated to Saint Lawrence in Birgu, across from Valletta, all the galleys and vessels paid tribute with cannon fire.

Sovereign Military Order of Malta

In 1530, Charles V granted the island of Malta to the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, which, having lost Rhodes in 1522, accepted the offer and established Malta as its headquarters. Malta became a sovereign state, and the Order of Saint John resumed its activities. Although small, its naval force ensured policing of the seas. Galleys operated in the summer, while larger vessels set sail in the winter. As the galleys were meant to be the premier naval force of Christendom, all Catholic powers were obliged to salute them. The flagship galley flew the white banner that was always displayed from the balcony of the General of the Galleys, who resided on the galleys’ deck. The sails of the galleys were striped in red and white, and emblazoned in the center with the arms of the Order. European powers often sought their maritime personnel from the Grand Master.

To become a knight and pursue a career within the Order of Malta, candidates whose proofs of nobility had been accepted were required to come to Malta for their novitiate. There, they undertook their “caravanes.” In his memoirs, Count de Saint-Priest recounts the experience of a young caravanista at sea. He explains that “the ‘caravanes’ were cruises in which every knight of Malta was obliged to participate at least once in his lifetime.”

By appointment only, 10th arrondissement, Paris.
nf@galerienicolasfournery.fr / +33 (0)6 26 57 59 87

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