Figure Dish 1880 - 1890

Curator: A pristine vision. This piece, dating from 1880 to 1890, is attributed to McKee and Brothers and known as "Figure Dish." It is a milk-white ceramic sculpture of a swan resting on a nest-like bowl. Editor: The opacity of the ceramic gives it an almost ethereal quality. It's so delicate, fragile even, as if any harsh movement could shatter the dream it represents. Curator: Swans often embody grace, beauty, and transformation. Their association with water suggests emotional depth and intuition. Do you see a similar reading? Editor: Indeed. Though the decorative nature feels like its primary goal, it does speak to the labor involved. Each ridge in the nest and each feather meticulously rendered. One has to imagine the mold and the firing, the skill necessary to produce this object. Curator: Precisely, and the swan itself is rich with associations – think of Leda and the Swan, the enduring symbol of love, purity, and, paradoxically, vulnerability. This small piece encapsulates such cultural significance, don’t you agree? Editor: I find the object whispers of a domestic context, a decorative piece designed for display, potentially filled with sweets or trinkets. Mass-produced maybe, or something a little bit more refined. Its value lay not only in what it held but in what it signified about the owner’s taste and status. Curator: Good point, and beyond mere "taste", swans signified more than a beautiful figure; their presence could recall mythology, aristocratic lineage, transformation, fidelity, and everlasting love in the home. It's a symbolic package. Editor: Looking closely at the overall simplicity, I'm fascinated by how the mass production shaped cultural values, where domestic life and the desire to exhibit status coalesce in such an object. Curator: Fascinating to consider its mass appeal alongside its deeper mythological roots, wouldn’t you say? It seems, in this tiny porcelain sculpture, there lies a confluence of production and symbolism, making it truly multi-layered.