Footnotes

Provenance
Bonhams sale, 2 December 2009, lot 209
Twinight Collection

Princess Charlotte Augusta of Wales (1776-1817) was the only legitimate child of the Prince of Wales, later George IV. Charlotte married Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld in 1816, but tragically she died on 6 November 1817, the day after giving birth to a stillborn child. Charlotte's passing was greatly mourned, not least by the Chamberlain family in Worcester for Princess Charlotte had been a major patron of the factory. In 1814 she awarded Chamberlains her own special warrant, a fact they advertised in The Courier in May and July of that year. Richly decorated dinner and dessert services were ordered by the Princess shortly afterwards and Chamberlain's factory marks were updated to include their 'Special Appointment to her Royal Highness, Princess Charlotte of Wales'.

A Chamberlain plaque now in the Museum of Royal Worcester is painted with a very similar portrait of the Princess, also by Humphrey Chamberlain. The plaque is inscribed on the reverse 'Her Royal Highness Princess Charlotte of Saxe-Coburg etc etc. H Chamberlain Jnr'. On this plaque and on the present vase, the costume worn by the Princess is identical to that in a mezzotint by William Saye after a full length portrait by George Dawe, now in the Belgian Embassy in London. In the Chamberlain version, however, the Princess's hairstyle relates to that seen in another portrait by Dawe, showing the Princess with Prince Leopold, apparently in a box at the theatre. Interestingly, the Chamberlain factory records show a payment to a Mr Dawes for £34 5s 0d in July 1822, a very large sum for the time. The plaque in the Museum at Worcester is dated 13 August 1822. Possibly the payment was for another portrait by Dawe, incorporating elements of both those discussed, and the true source for the Chamberlain image.

Humphrey Chamberlain Jnr. was the only artist permitted to sign his work at the Chamberlain factory, and deservedly so, for its execution is quite breath-taking. R.W. Binns was full of admiration, writing in his Century of Potting (1865)

"... one of the boasted beauties of Mr Chamberlain's work was that you could never distinguish the touch nor discover how the effect was produced, hence a powerful magnifying glass was always placed in the hands of strangers in order that they might examine its minute beauties..."

Binns was inviting comparison with the work of Thomas Baxter, who had painted alongside Humphrey Chamberlain from 1819-21. According to Binns, there were 'frequent discussions' between the two painters about the artistic merit of Humphrey Chamberlain's work. Baxter felt that Chamberlain's work was wonderful for its manipulative power but for nothing else. This was at the time when Baxter was unhappy that he had to paint 'dear little things', while the son of the factory owner was able to work on Shakespearian scenes and royal portraits.