Pair of Höchst bottles, painted with polychrome Chinese and African figures
Painted by Andreas Philipp Oettner, unknown model, Höchst 1763-66; 12.2 cm and 12.1 cm high; red six-spoked wheel marks and scratch marks "III"
Painted by Andreas Philipp Oettner, unknown model, Höchst 1763-66; 12.2 cm and 12.1 cm high; red six-spoked wheel marks and scratch marks "III"
The Chinese figures are a reminiscence to the Blohm Service with its turquoise theatre scenes. The large sailing ships that fill the whole painting ground are probably unique in Oettner's well-known oeuvre.
Unique - we do not know of another example - are also the Native scenes on the second bottle. The typical Oettner eyes are not so pronounced here. But the overall impression as well as the strokes in the foreground, as much as the naivety of the scene belong to his signature. The same is evident in the camels with their human-looking heads.
Oettner painted an oil painting dated and signed by him in his early years, which shows a portrait of a lady with dark-skinned servant (Flach: Malerei auf Ludwigsburger Porzellan 2005 p. 138 fn. 176).
Only two other "Büchsger" are known to us:
Röder / Oppenheim (exhibition Catalogue 1930, no. 694 T. 122).
Iron-red wheel or underglaze-blue wheel mark with an electoral hat.
Painted with rural scenes, Röder dated 1760 - 65.
Exhibition Catalogue Mainz 1964 (No. 285 "Streubüchse")
Pressed wheel mark, dated c. 1765.
The comparative examples are undoubtedly used as spreaders, since, as Röder expressly points out, they have openings on the undersides for filling in spices.
The filling openings are missing on our bottles.
The height of the comparative pieces with lids is 15.5cm.
The dating of the bottles on between 1763 and 1766 follows the duration of Oettner's stay in Höchst. (According to Flach, the Ludwigsburg records of the financial year 1764-1765 shows that Oettner was temporarily present / active in Ludwigsburg).