'Bailey Banks & Biddle' Teacup – Manufacture Haviland – Limoges, c. 1900

Magnificent fine Limoges porcelain cup made by the Haviland factory for the prestigious American company Bailey Banks & Biddle Co., a jeweler and luxury retailer established in Philadelphia.

The cup has a generous and perfectly balanced, entirely white form, enriched with remarkable gilded decoration. A wide frieze of embossed gilding, with undulating contours evoking drapes or lambrequins, highlights the upper rim. The same ornamental vocabulary extends to the body of the piece and around the foot.

The handle, entirely enhanced with gold, adopts an elegant and slightly angular shape. Stylized vegetal motifs complete the decoration on either side of the handle.

The reverse bears the "Haviland France" stamp, accompanied by the inscription "Made expressly for Bailey Banks & Biddle Co. Philadelphia PA" as well as the number 23970. This association documents the American destination of the piece. The Haviland France marking allows its manufacture to be placed approximately between 1894 and 1931; the style and decoration suggest a dating around the turn of the 20th century.

A particularly decorative piece, both understated in its white background and spectacular in the importance of its gilding, which testifies to the American clientele's taste for luxury French porcelains during the Belle Époque.

Very good overall condition for its age. The gilding, worked in a subtly nuanced and pulverized effect, accentuates the precious and decorative character of this piece.