Biscuit porcelain group with horses and sedan chair – Scheibe-Alsbach porcelain, first half 20th century

Large bisque porcelain group with horses and sedan chair – Scheibe-Alsbach

An impressive bisque figure group more than half a metre long: an elegant lady in a straw bonnet sits in a richly decorated sedan chair carried between two horses. Around her are a rider in a tricorn hat, a boy blowing his horn and a girl with a basket of flowers, all dressed in 18th-century costume. The whole scene stands on an oval base with tree stumps, leaves and flowers. It is made of unglazed porcelain (bisque or biscuit), which has the look of white marble. The base bears the impressed crossed-S mark of Scheibe-Alsbach (A.W.F. Kister, Thuringia).

Why we chose this piece

A porcelain sculpture this large and lively is rarely found. The details are surprisingly fine: the harness with its fringes, the lace collars, the bows on the bonnets and the rococo scrolls of the sedan chair. It is a true narrative piece, a romantic genre scene in which you keep discovering something new.

Style and interior

This group looks wonderful on a mantelpiece, a console table or a large commode in a classic, romantic or French interior. In a clean, modern interior it also works beautifully as a white, sculptural focal point: the monochrome bisque looks calm and refined.

Dimensions: length 54 cm, height 29.5 cm, depth approx. 20 cm
Material: bisque (unglazed porcelain)
Style: romantic genre group in rococo style
Period: first half of the 20th century (c. 1905–1960)
Origin: Germany, Thuringia
Maker: Scheibe-Alsbach (A.W.F. Kister), impressed mark on the base (photo 9)
Condition: the front legs of the front horse are missing (photo 7), a small piece of the front horse’s ear is missing and there is a small chip to the lady’s bonnet (photo 4). The original reins are missing; the metal rings and a few wire remnants remain at the horses’ bits (photo 6). In the deeper parts of the relief the bisque is slightly discoloured here and there from dust and age. Despite these minor flaws it remains a charming decorative piece.
Price:
€ 175

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