Description:
English delft circular dish with "W M R" for "William and Mary Rex" over the full-length portraits of William III (1650-1702) and Mary II (1662-1694) in blue, yellow, and purple-black, which is popularly known as a "blue-dash charger." Mary II was the eldest daughter of James II (1633-1701), and her Dutch husband, William of Orange, who was also Stadholder of the United Provinces from 1672-1702, was the great-nephew of Charles I. William III and Mary II jointly ascended the throne in 1689 on the invitation of the English parliament after the Bloodless or Glorious Revolution of 1688 resulted in the flight of James II to France; they were the only dual monarchy in British history. Their tenure transformed the rule by the divine right of kings to that of a constitutional monarchy. The English public embraced Mary, whom they considered lovely, but William’s foreign birth, natural reserve, and ill health won him few admirers. Fueling William’s unpopularity was his involvement in foreign wars that increased England’s national debt to £12 million in 1700. who jointly ascended to the throne in 1689 on the invitation of the English Parliament. Mary was the eldest daughter of James II and her Dutch husband, William of Orange, was the great-nephew of Charles I; they were the only dual monarchy in British history. Many of these plates were produced, most between 1689 and Mary's death in 1694; and some were probably produced as commemorative items until William's death in 1702. The decoration captures the royal couple’s predominant features. Life-size effigies made at their deaths (still in the collection of Westminster Abbey) document William’s short stature of five feet six and one-half inches, and Mary’s full height of five feet eleven inches. Dishes that portray the monarchs often depict William on a footstool or employ some other artifice so that his crown appears level with that of his queen. William’s chief physical characteristics were his high forehead and hooked nose; amply built, Mary possessed a handsome face with a double chin and prominent bosom. Both wear blue and yellow crowns and have long curls; William holds a yellow, three-pronged sceptre and wears a yellow robe with blue ermine edging, and Mary holds a fan. The figures are flanked by blue sponged trees, and the rim is encircled with a yellow line and blue dashes. Designed to hang on a wall, the dish’s foot rim is pierced with a hole for a threaded wire. According to Jonathan Horne (January 23, 1995), this dish was made in either London or Bristol.
Tags:
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