Gardner Factory gilt ground porcelain antique vase

The vase is shaped in an amphora form, and has a cylindrical neck with a flared rim. The sides are mounted with foliate-moulded handles with lion's head terminals. The front of the body of the vase is painted with an idyllic countryside scene within a gilt ciselé border. The reverse side is decorated with a crown surrounded by foliage and flowers on a green ground. The vase is set on a spreading socle and square base, which is marked to the underside with the marks for the Russian Gardner Factory.

The present vase is similar in form to two vases by the Gardner Factory, dated 1828-1829, preserved in the State Russian Museum, St Petersburg. These vases are particularly notable for their unapologetic display of the aesthetics of High Neoclassicism: Romanticised scenes of Russian peasant life. The painted scene portrays a highborn family on a walk, greeting some working fishermen by the river against a tranquil countryside background. The scene depicted on the vase is probably by one of the artists working for the Gardner Factory.