Footnotes

Provenance
The Earl of Abergavenny
Bonhams sale, 5 December 2007, lot 309
Twinight Collection

This vase formed part of one of the most important commissions received by the Chamberlain factory. The order was placed in June 1813 by Lord Nevill, Earl of Abergavenny and it was written up in detail in the factory records. The original order still exists, carefully preserved in the archives housed in the Museum of Royal Worcester. In addition to tea and dinner services, the order lists a series of vases with only brief descriptions, but sufficient to recognise the surviving parts of this most important set. Lord Nevill asked for

'5 ornaments. 1 Regent Henry 8th, 2 chocolates, King John, King Richard
3rd, 2 Bell shape, Henry 6th, part 1, King John'

The cost of this set was £60 18s.0d. Also ordered were '2 Luminaries' and '2 Grace mugs' as well as an inkstand. Most of these pieces still survive. The incredible 'Grace Mugs' were discovered by Henry Sandon in 1977 and with funds from the V and A he was able to purchase these for the Museum of Royal Worcester where they can be seen today. The inkstand was sold by Bonhams on 6 June 1990 and is now in the Cheekwood Museum in Nashville, Tennessee. The 'luminaries' are what we now call spill vases and these are in a private collection in Britain, while the 2 Bell shape [ornaments] which are small campana shaped vases remain within the Nevill family. The whereabouts of the two 'chocolates' is unknown.

The present lot corresponds with the 'Regent' ornament listed in the order. This fine vase was named the 'Regent' shape in honour of the factory's most important patron. This vase was in a UK private collection and is illustrated by Geoffrey Godden, Chamberlain Worcester Porcelain, colour pl.VIII and pl.105, and on the front cover. It is also illustrated by John Sandon, Worcester Porcelain at Cheekwood (2008), p.163, and in the same author's Worcester Porcelain (2009), p.21.

When the order was placed, Lord Nevill requested that it was to be ready in just four months. In reality the commission took more than a year to manufacture, and the porcelain was dispatched (or invoiced) from Worcester on 21 July 1814. Payment was received by the factory many months later.

The source for the paintings on the 'ornaments' was a volume of scenes from Shakespeare published by John and Josiah Boydell. Some of the best artists of the day were commissioned by the Boydells for this influential work. The image chosen for this vase was a painting by Rev Matthew William Peters engraved by Robert Thaw. The Queen, surrounded by her Ladies in Waiting, is shown reprimanding Cardinal Wolsey. The Chamberlain archives record that a copy of Boydells' Illustrations from Shakespeare was purchased by the factory to be used as a source for their painters.

Humphrey Chamberlain used the Boydell book when he decorated another significant commission. A dessert service made for the Prince Regent and referred to by his nephew Thomas Chamberlain as 'one small dessert service painted with subjects from Shakespeare by my uncle for the Prince Regent cost the latter 4000 pounds'. This set is now in Los Angeles County Museum.