A pair of Chinese famille rose 'Pompadour' plates, Qianlong

Dia.: 23 cm

Examples bearing this design were once thought to have been made for Madame de Pompadour, hence the now well-known name of the pattern. Born Jeanne-Antoinette Poisson (French for 'fish' and painted in two of the cartouches on the plate), Madame de Pompadour was the famous mistress of Louis XV, who is said to be represented on the service by the eagles. However, that misconception has largely been debunked as discussed in Michel Beurdeley, Porcelain of the East India Companies, London, 1962, cat. no. 190, and David Howard and John Ayers, China for the West, Vol. II, London, 1978, cat. no. 449.