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Pair Antique Grainger Attributed Cobalt Blue Porcelain Moon Pilgrim Flasks Snake Handles Gilt Vases
Made in England c. 1880.
Each Approx. 9 1/4" High x 5 1/2" Long x 2 1/2" Wide.
Exceptional and highly rare matching pair of late-Victorian English porcelain medium-sized cabinet vases.
They showcase the luxury craftsmanship of the Aesthetic Movement.
Each vessel features a flat-bodied circular form coated in a deep, glossy royal cobalt blue ground. This deep blue background serves as a canvas for asymmetrical, hand-applied raised gold leaf decoration.
The flasks rest securely on four integrated, cream-tinted rectangular bracket feet highlighted with bright gold gilding.
The botanical designs beautifully embrace the Japonisme style of the 1880s, highlighting wild field grasses, a dragonfly, and a butterfly.
Two dual-molded side shoulder handles featuring unglazed bisque caryatid nymph heads with gilded hair ornaments. The handles rest on top of three-dimensional, unglazed bisque classical maiden faces wrapped in gilded drapery. Each head is topped by tightly coiled, intertwined double-serpents meticulously detailed with hand-painted gold scales.
Supported by four beautifully molded, gold-trimmed scroll feet.
Obverse (Front) Decoration is hand-painted in thick, relief-textured gold enamel. Vase A depicts a detailed butterfly in flight amidst wild meadow grasses. Vase B depicts a complementary scene featuring a flying dragonfly.
Reverse (Back) Decoration for Both flasks feature a simplified, elegant secondary scene displaying stalks of wild grasses and field oats.
Both unglazed bases are hand-painted with identical iron-oxide red fraction marks reading "1/458". The "1" denotes the specific master decorator's workstation, while the "458" marks the shape and pattern mold series. The absence of a stamped factory logo and the presence of faint incised potting marks are hallmark traits of high-end English (such as Grainger Worcester) or French art porcelain produced just before the 1891 McKinley Tariff Act required country-of-origin stamps.
Excellent antique condition with no chips, cracks, hairline fractures, or structural repairs to the delicate snake handles or bisque faces. The raised gold leaf decoration remains incredibly bright and intact with only minor, expected shelf-wear along the bottom edges of the feet and top rim. Normal wear from use and age.
