The potpourri vase at the center of this three-piece set of porcelain is one of only a few objects of this kind in the world. It was created at the royal porcelain manufactory in Sèvres, a village west of Paris. This detailed and fanciful object in the shape of a ship rests on scrolled porcelain feet and sits on a gilded bronze base. The round bottom represents the ship’s hull. On each end, a projecting spar emerges from the mouth of a mysterious face. The openwork lid represents the ship’s sails. Atop the mast, a glorious white pennant covered with gold fleur-de-lis flutters in a suggested wind. The overall design, in green and blue, is highlighted in gold.

For all its whimsical imagery, this piece had a practical use. It was meant to hold potpourri—a mix of spices and floral petals, whose fragrance, diffusing through the perforated lid, would perfume an entire room.

The inventive design for this potpourri was created in 1757 by Jean-Claude Duplessis, the director of the Sèvres manufactory. This example is from 1759, the year Madame de Pompadour, the official mistress of King Louis XV, purchased her first potpourri ship.

By the same designer as the potpourri are the two vases ‘à oreilles’ (literally, with ears) that flank it. Together, these three works were meant to be showcased on a mantel or a piece of furniture, in a grouping that was called a garniture.