Equestrian Figure of a Dragoon

Public Domain

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CultureEnglish

Titles

Equestrian Figure of a Dragoon

Datec. 1750–1760

Made inEngland

MediumLead-glazed earthenware (creamware)

Dimensions9 in. height (22.9 cm)

Credit LineThe Bayou Bend Collection, gift of Miss Ima Hogg

Object numberB.56.68

Current Location

Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens

Pine Room

On view

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Department

Bayou Bend

Object Type

CERAMICS

DescriptionIn the mid-1700s, English potters developed a light- or cream-colored earthenware body that, when coated with a lead glaze, yielded wares with a glassy, shiny surface. Josiah Wedgwood continued to refine this pottery, which he later called “Queens’ Ware” because of a commission he received from Queen Charlotte in 1765. Many potteries produced these wares, employing numerous techniques to decorate them. To create the irregular blotches of color on this figure, the potter sponged the surface of the once-fired ware with metallic oxides before applying the lead glaze. A second firing to fix the glaze completed the process. Dragoons were mounted troops that used their horses for mobility, generally dismounting to fight, rather than fighting while on horseback as true cavalry troops did.
ProvenanceMrs. J. Insley Blair, Jr. (Natalie Knowlton Blair, 1887–1951), Tuxedo Park, New York; Estate of Natalie Knowlton Blair; consigned to [Parke-Bernet Galleries, New York, January 22, 1954, lot 82]; purchased by [Ginsburg & Levy, New York, 1954–1956]; purchased by Miss Ima Hogg, 1956; given to MFAH, by 1966.
Exhibition History

Cataloguing data may change with further research.

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