A rare New Hall coffee cup and saucer by Fidelle Duvivier, circa 1785-90

The cup with a 'clip' handle, painted with rural landscape vignettes in sepia monochrome, both with a group of three figures in conversation, the cup with a smoking kiln and buildings in the distance, the saucer with a windmill in the distance, all amongst distinctive trees with characteristic rocks, trailing roots and foliage below, the borders with a gilt leafy vine undulating around a gold line, gilt line rims, saucer 13.1cm diam

A very similar saucer painted with an identical scene incorporating a windmill within identical gilt borders is illustrated by David Holgate, Fidelle Duvivier Paints New Hall, ECC Trans., Vol.11, Pt.1 (1981), pl.12d. Holgate notes that Duvivier's sepia monochrome pieces all share a number of frequently recurring features, including houses with this distinctive gable, often with triple fenestration and sometimes also a chimney stack in the centre of the roof as seen on the cup. Kilns are also a common feature and windmills are always shown in the Continental style with capped stone towers as seen on the saucer.