Artwork Page for Figure of the Pietà

Details / Information for Figure of the Pietà

Figure of the Pietà

c. 1761
sculptor

Joseph Willems

(Flemish, 1715–1766)
maker

Chelsea Porcelain Factory

(Britain, London, 1745–84)
Culture
England, London, Chelsea
Medium
Soft-paste porcelain, painted in enamels
Measurements
height: 38.5 cm (15 3/16 in.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase from various donors by exchange 2019.75
Public Domain
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Location
203A British Painting and Decorative Arts
Print
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Did You Know?

Only three examples of this figure by the Chelsea Porcelain Factory are known to exist.

Description

The distinctively Roman Catholic subject of Mary cradling her son, the crucified Christ, suggests this figure was probably made for one of the aristocratic English families forced to practice their Catholicism in secret during the mid-1700s. Because of the laws banning Catholic worship in England, grand houses were often modified to include private chapels or rooms in private quarters where visiting priests delivered the sacraments in defiance of the laws favoring Protestant worship. A figure of this size and type likely would have served as an important devotional focal point within that context.
A soft-paste porcelain sculpture depicts a woman in a pink robe and blue cloak, cradling a pale man's body across her lap. Her head tilts upward with one arm outstretched, while a small winged figure kneels beside them, kissing the man's hand. They rest on a floral mound above a dark blue, gilded pedestal featuring an oval painting. A crown of thorns sits among colorful flowers near the man's wounded feet.

Figure of the Pietà

c. 1761

Joseph Willems, Chelsea Porcelain Factory

(Flemish, 1715–1766), (Britain, London, 1745–84)
England, London, Chelsea

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