A Chinese armorial dish for the Portuguese market exhibited at the “Musée Oriental”, Paris, 1869 . Qianlong

The oblong dish with a deep cavetto and scalloping rim, painted in the famille rose palette with garlands of flowers on the rim and a coat of arms suspend from a large bow with a long wavy ribbons, from which emerges a garland surrounding the coat of arms in the centre of José Antonio de Mata de Sousa Coutinho, 10th Correio-mor.

Provenance

- Benjamin Jaurès (1823-1889), Minister of the Navy
- Musée Oriental (Paris exhibition, 1869)

Related works

For a plate from this service, from the RA collection, see Jorge Welsh and Luisa Vinhais, The RA Collection of Chinese Ceramics: A Collector’s Vision, Tome III, 2011, no. 438.

About the exhibition of the musée oriental, see Beatrice Quette, Japon Japonisme, 2018, pp. 12/13

Notice

The Exhibition of the “musée oriental” at the Palais de l’Industrie in Paris in 1869

In 1865, two years prior to the Universal Exhibition of 1867, the exhibition “musée retrospectif” held at the Palais de l’Industrie aimed to stimulate the work of artists and industry professionals by juxtaposing ancient decorative arts with contemporary productions, thus providing new sources of inspiration drawn from both European history and distant civilizations. At that time, France emerged as a major hub for the market of Oriental arts from the mid-19th century, thanks to various missions, its influence in certain geographical areas of the world, the peace treaty with Japan in 1858, and the sacking of the Summer Palace in Beijing in 1860.

The situation was so flourishing that the Union Centrale decided in November 1869 to temporarily open the “musée oriental”. The patronage of the exhibition included notable figures such as Count de Butenval, Edmond du Sommerard, Admiral Jaurès, Adrien de Longpérier, Baron de Monville, Count de Nieuwerkerke, Baron Alphonse de Rothschild, Baron Gustave de Rothschild, Count de Rougé, and Count de Vogué.

The Union Centrale des Arts Décoratifs consequently organized its fifth major exhibition, in which the retrospective segment—the “Oriental Museum”—showcased approximately 6,000 works. The arts of China and Japan were displayed in the first three galleries, intermittently followed by those of Persia, India, and Greece in the subsequent four rooms. The objects were lent by collectors, merchants, artists, prominent individuals, and even others museums such as the Sèvres Museum and the Adrien Dubouché Museum.

Notably, the exhibition included a section dedicated to “Drawing of Europe” porcelain (approximately 150 pieces), featuring armorial porcelain, primarily from the collection of Benjamin Jaurès. With the exception of a plate bearing the arms of France, exhibited under number 2369, the heraldry was not described.

Among the other lenders for the Chinese porcelain were the Duke of Martina (his collection today held at the Museo Nazionale della Ceramica Duca di Martina, Naples), Mr. Paul Gasnault, Mrs. Malinet, Mr. Dutuit (Musée du Petit Palais), and Albert Jacquemart.

Only a few pieces from the collections housed in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs still originate from the exhibition of the musée oriental.

Benjamin Jaurès (1823-1889)

Benjamin Jaurès, born in Paris on February 3, 1823, and dying in the same city on March 13, 1889, was a French naval officer, the younger brother of Admiral Charles Jaurès and a cousin of Jean Jaurès. He participated in the Crimean War, notably at the Siege of Sevastopol, as well as in expeditions to China and Cochinchina. Once again serving as aide-de-camp to Admiral Charner, commander of the China Sea Division aboard the Imperatrice Eugénie, he distinguished himself during the landing operations at the mouth of the Bai He in August and September 1860, and in Cochinchina, he was involved in the assault on the lines at Kin-Hoa and the capture of forts on the Saigon River in February 1861.

Elected as a deputy for Tarn in the supplementary elections of July 2, 1871, he served in the National Assembly, aligning himself with moderate Republican sentiments and sitting in the center-left. He voted in support of Adolphe Thiers’ policies. In 1876, he became a senator for life, and on September 5, 1877, he was appointed Commander of the Legion of Honor. He advanced to Vice Admiral on October 31, 1878, and served as France’s ambassador to Madrid from December 1878 to February 1882, followed by his ambassadorship in Saint Petersburg until 1883. On February 22, 1889, he was named Minister of the Navy, but he tragically passed away suddenly in that role less than a month later.

A Chinese armorial dish for the Portuguese market for José Antonio de Mata de Sousa Coutinho (1718-1790)

The oblong dish comes from a service ordered by José Antonio de Mata de Sousa Coutinho (1718-1790), 10th Correio-mor, who oner 3 avril 1769 married his relative D. Joaquina de Camara, daughter of Luis Goncalves da Camara Coutinho. His ancestor, Luis Gomez of Elvas, possessed a considerable fortune, and for 70.000 cruzados acquired the position of Correio-mor (Postmaster general) for life and to be inherited by letter of sale in Madrid in 1606. The family became ennobled thought marriage and maintained the position od Correio-mor until the eleventh and last owner  of this position, the first Count of Penafiel (1776 ? – 1859). The ninth Correio-mor, Luis-Vittorio renovated the house of the Quinta da Mata das Flores in Loures, transforming it into a somptuous palace, which still exists today in the Quinta do Correio-mor. His son José Antonio de Mata de Sousa Coutinho was responsible for finishing the work on the above-mentioned palace and ordering his coat of arms, in a large size, to be painted on the ceiling of the reception room the same that is painted of his armorial porcelain service. The service was ordered shortly after his wedding.