Sèvres

Two items of an ‘Egyptian’ service of tableware, made by the French Manufacture Nationale de Porcelaine – better known as Sèvres – on the outskirts of Paris, France. Now in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England, they form part of a service reputedly sent by Napoleon to the Duke of Wellington.

A classic 19th-century Sèvres ‘Saigon’ vase. By the beginning of the 19th century, the heyday of Sèvres was all but over. Although the factory's reputation for superb quality was undimmed, its dominance as leader of style in courtly elegance had faded.

Fine porcelain produced at a factory in Sèvres, France (now a Paris suburb), since the early 18th century. It is characterized by the use of intensely coloured backgrounds (such as pink and royal blue), against which flowers are painted in elaborately embellished frames, often in gold.

It became popular after the firm's patronage by Louis XV's mistress, Madame de Pompadour. The state porcelain factory was established in the park of St-Cloud 1756, and it is also the site of a national museum of ceramics.