Among the outstanding ceramic artists lured to the Minton factory during the second half of the nineteenth century was Marc-Louis-Emmanuel Solon, a former principal designer and decorator at the Sèvres factory in France. He perfected the decorating technique of pâte-sur-pâte in which translucent layers of slip (diluted clay) are applied to the ceramic body, building up a cameo-like surface. This clock garniture is a tour de force in pâte-sur-pâte. The garniture was exhibited at the 1872 London Second Annual International Exhibition where it was one of the ceramic highlights. It was made purely as an exhibition piece, since the clock mechanism was never fitted to the central vase.
Come and see this clock garniture on Level 2 at NGV International.