Samson Centerpiece

Centerpiece. SAMSON. France, late nineteenth century.
Polychrome porcelain.
Flowers in carved stone.
Mounted in gilded bronze.
Measurements: 45 x 40 x 25 cm.

Centerpiece of the firm Samson. It consists of a sculptural group in hand-painted porcelain, with a couple of Asian-looking characters, one of them dressed in bloomers and shirt with puffed sleeves. With great effort they try to move an oversized pot in relation to their small bodies. The floral bouquet has been made in carved stone, and shows a delicate and detailed craftsmanship. The center rests on a base of gilded bronze and openwork formed by embossed scrolls and scrolls.

The firm Samson, Edmé et Cie. was founded by Edmé Samson in 1845 in Paris, with the aim of producing replicas of the ceramic and porcelain pieces exhibited in museums and private collections. The factory, moved to Montreuil in 1864, focused on reproducing antique and also modern pieces from other manufactures, such as Meissen, Sèvres, Chelsea and Derby. Among the pieces reproducing styles of the past are objects inspired by Italian majolica, Persian plates, Bernard Palissy pieces and Hispano-Muslim ceramics, as well as Japanese Imari and Arita pieces and reproductions of Chinese porcelain, especially of the 18th century Pink Family and Green Family styles. Samson's pieces were always reproductions, never copies with deceptive intent, since they all originally featured the factory mark, an anchor (although on some pieces it was hidden or removed). In addition, he tried to distinguish his pieces by using hard porcelain paste, when most of the originals to which he referred were of soft paste. Likewise, the scale of the pieces was changed, as well as the colors used for their decoration.