Cup and saucer 1785 - 1799

This porcelain cup and saucer were created by the Tournai manufactory. Observe the floral motifs that delicately adorn the cup and saucer. These blossoms, rendered in meticulous detail, draw upon a long tradition in art, symbolizing themes of renewal, beauty, and ephemerality. Consider how floral patterns appear in ancient Minoan frescoes, bursting with life, or in the serene lotus blossoms of Buddhist art, representing purity and enlightenment. In the context of this cup and saucer, the flowers evoke a sense of cultivated elegance and domestic tranquility. Yet, these symbols are never static. The single flower in the center of the saucer, surrounded by radiating lines, echoes the ancient solar disk. Across millennia, the sun symbol has been a powerful representation of life-giving energy and divine illumination. Its presence on this everyday object elevates the act of drinking tea to something almost sacred, a moment of quiet contemplation infused with the energy of the cosmos. It is these recurring symbols that weave a tapestry of human experience, bridging our conscious lives with the ancient, often subconscious, wellsprings of cultural memory.