All pieces except the tray with interlaced Ls, date-letter E for 1758, painter’s mark a heraldic label for André-Vincent Vielliard, known as Vielliard père (active 1752-90).

This shape of tray was first produced in around 1753, and the more frequently-found version with pierced sides is known from 1757. Ours is a rare example of the largest size and with the early dark blue (bleu lapis) ground. Most square trays were intended to hold just one cup and saucer, forming the classic déjeuner carré, as described in the Wallace Collection catalogue. This un-commonly large square tray appears to be the only one known with more pieces, although they are all small examples of their shapes.

As is usual with Vielliard, the children are taken from engravings after paintings by François Boucher.

Several costly bleu lapis déjeuners carrés were sold in 1758, without the components being mentioned and two were purchased by the Parisian marchand-mercier Lazare Duvaux as part of his purchase list for the first half of the year [Sèvres archieves f.64v.]. One cost 144 livres and the other, which Duvaux’s daybook informs us had bird decoration, cost 168 livres. The latter was sold on to Madame de Pompadour on 23 January [Duvaux no. 3038] which shows the type of collector purchasing such pieces and another tea service was sold for cash on 14 September [Sèvres archives, f.68v.] for 192 livres.

This could possibly be the ‘small’ tea service with dark blue ground and children painted in colours purchased by the Prince de Soubise from Lazare-Duvaux in March 1758.