Sword mark with star, Marcolini period, 1774-1814.

Polychrome painted, gold decorated. H cup 10.5 cm, Ø original saucer 13.5 cm.

Bell cup with angled handle, lid with laurel wreath knob. On the cup the grisaille painted depiction of the young Abelard and on the saucer the depiction of Heloise, on the lid a commemorative column with the inscription "Abelard / Heloise". Depiction in the saucer mirror a little rubbed, gold edges a little rubbed.

The representation recalls the famous medieval love story of the scholastic thinker Abelard (1079-1142) and his pupil Heloise (1095-1164), for whose fate the 18th century was particularly receptive. In 1717, the poem "Eloisa to Abelard" by the English poet and writer Alexander Pope (1688-1744) was published and enjoyed great popularity throughout the 18th century, appealing equally to the sensibilities of the Enlightenment and pre-Romanticism. The portraits of the two lovers depicted on the cup and saucer enjoyed great popularity in the 18th century and can be traced back to a mezzotint sheet depicting Heloise published in London in 1775 and its counterpart depicting Abelard published the following year. Both sheets were made after paintings by the English painter Daniel Gardner (1850-1805).

Literature : Wegner (2012), p. 33ff