SALINS – Pareja de platos de barbotina «Perruches et Fruits», marcados SALINS, c. 1890 – Art Nouveau - Dish (2) - Faience

Pair of Salins plates, Art Nouveau, especially attractive for their antiquity, condition and decorative quality.

FAÏENCE DE SALINS:
The prestigious French earthenware manufactory Faïence de Salins was a renowned firm highly valued internationally for the mastery of its slurry and its beautiful nature-inspired designs.

Based in Salins-les-Bains, in the French Jura, it reached its artistic and commercial peak at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. Its productions include dinnerware and decorative pieces in faience, maiolica and barbotine, with abundant use of reliefs, vegetal motifs, fruits, birds and other elements inspired by nature.

With the arrival of Claude-François Rigal as director in 1885, enamels ombrants were introduced and fine hard-pinish faience was developed. In 1912, Édouard Charbonnier acquired the manufactory and took over its direction, leading it to its golden era.

Prestigious prizes. The very high quality of its creations earned international recognition:

• Médaille d'argent à l'Exposition Universelle de Paris, 1889 awarded for its new paste compositions.

• Médaille d'or at the Exposition internationale des Arts décoratifs et industriels modernes in Paris, 1925.

After more than a century at the forefront of tableware and collecting, the historic factory closed its doors definitively in 1998, turning its pieces into cult objects for collectors and lovers of French earthenware.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PIECES AND THEIR HISTORICAL VALUE
This pair of decorative dessert plates was made using the polychrome barbotine technique, with the composition “Perruches et Fruits,” starring two inseparable parakeets perched on a branch and surrounded by leaves and fruits.

The relief modeling defines the wings, plumage and tails in special detail, enhanced by different shades of green and turquoise blue.

The combination of smooth surfaces and relief areas, together with the different glaze applications, provides the whole with a marked three-dimensional effect.

The motif is framed by an elaborate geometric and vegetal perimeter border with pierced elements.

Both pieces feature the same model and decorative composition, with small differences in the tone and final appearance of the glazes. Likewise, the photographs allow appreciation of a chromatic difference between the two pieces:

• First plate: ivory-ochre background, with a toastier appearance.

• Second plate: preserves a light ivory background, providing a more intense contrast with the green and bluish tones of the parakeets.

DATING
• Period: circa 1890
• Artistic movement: Art Nouveau

MARKEING and AUTHENTICITY
The back of the pieces bears the authentic mark of the manufactory engraved on the clay with the inscription “SALINS” in molded uppercase letters. This incised stamp was the official seal used by the factory between 1880 and 1900.

CONDITION
Both pieces are in excellent antique condition, especially considering their more than 130 years of life. The relief of the birds, branches, leaves and fruits is largely preserved and maintains very good definition.

The surface shows a natural, clean and uniform crazing, which evidences the noble aging of fine ware without alterations or humidity darkening, and slight signs of use/aging.

DIMENSIONS:
• Diameter 20.5 cm
• Height: 1 cm

ADDITIONAL NOTES:
• Photographs are part of the description.
• The indicated measurements and weight correspond to a setup for secure packaging, essential to guarantee proper protection of the pieces during transport.