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QA-2026-081
Frankenthal wall plaque
An oval biscuit porcelain wall plaque in the Jasperware style, with a white fête galante scene on a green ground. It is marked Fr. W. Wessel, Frankenthal.
- Every mark photographed and transcribed below
- Condition stated in full, including what is wrong with it
- Posted insured and tracked from the Netherlands
- Return within 14 days if it is not as described
About this piece
The white relief shows a young couple in 18th-century courtly dress. The gentleman holds a mandolin or lute. The lady sits beside him with a basket. A lamb rests at his feet, with foliage and trees behind.
The figures are layered in high relief over a matte sage-green ground. The effect is that of a cameo, with real depth. The frame is a moulded border of scrolling acanthus with a tied bow at the top.
The reverse carries a green printed mark, Fr. W. Wessel, Frankenthal, and an impressed number 730. The number is a model number, used to identify the mould. Plaques of this form and style were made in Germany around 1890–1910.
Condition
- Horizontal hairline across the bottom of the plate, which seems to be a factory defect rather than later damage
- Two fingers broken off and restored
- Small chips and wear to the green rim on the reverse
Details
| Object | Wall plaque |
|---|---|
| Material | Biscuit porcelain (unglazed bisque), white relief on a coloured bisque ground |
| Country | Germany |
| Maker | Fr. W. Wessel, Frankenthal |
| Period | ca. 1890–1910 |
| Style | Rococo revival with a Jugendstil-type border, Jasperware style |
| Height | 24 cm (9.4") |
| Width | 18,5 cm (7.3") |
| Condition | Restored |
| Attribution | Marked: green printed Fr. W. Wessel, Frankenthal mark and impressed model number 730 on the reverse |
Green and white bisque plaques
Around 1890–1910, German makers produced wall plaques in green and white bisque in the Jasperware style, inspired by 18th-century Rococo scenes. Fr. W. Wessel of Frankenthal was one of the makers working in this manner. The Volkstedt factory in Thuringia made a well-known series of similar high-relief green bisque plaques. Impressed model numbers like 730 identified the mould for production and stock control.
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