Literature

The flowers are named on the reverse of the plates in blue enamel text as Grenades (pomegranate) in the centre, and on the rom Jacintes (hyacinths), Gladioles (gladioli), and Roses tremiere simples (single holyhocks).

The decoration of this service is described in the Sèvres documents as 'beau bleu, groupes de fleurs naturelles en portraits' or 'fleurs d'après nature'. It is unclear whether these botanical images were copied from engravings or others sources but seeing that the Micaud was working in November and February on such pieces shows that he would not have been working from freshly-grown specimens.

The service was sold in January 1800 to Maison Lemercier, a firm of Paris marchands-merciers, along with three other services, vases and tea sets. Much of the Lemercier service was until 2025 in the collection of the Earls of Leicester at Holkham Hall, Norfolk. As the service originally comprised 72 plates and 41 are at Holkham, it is likely that our plate comes from another group of this service which had 33 plates. They were sold at Christie's in 1870 and again in 1906 (down to 31 plates), stated to be formerly from the collection of Lady Blessington.