Height: 14.9 cm / Underglaze blue crossed swords mark with dot / Impressed number "30" / Meissen model by Peter Reinicke after a signed drawing by Christophe Huet (1700–1759), who also created the designs for the Monkey Band / Molded and decorated around 1765
he commission for the 34-figure Cris de Paris series was placed in Meissen in 1753 by the leading Parisian porcelain dealer Jean Huet—likely a brother of the painter Christophe Huet. This was an established business relationship, dating back even before 1729, when connections with Rudolphe Lemaire began (Clarke, p. 28).
Reinheckel (1992, No. 15 a, b) cites Huet's inscription on the drawing:
"No. 33 C H – a wine vinegar seller, he has a tin measure hanging from his cart, a copper funnel, and a wooden mustard pot or jar No. 18. 1753 – not yet in form."
We now know that, according to Parisian guild regulations, only vinegar sellers were allowed to call out mustard for sale.
Comparable pieces:
