Punch Bowl

c. 1769

Artist unknown (Chinese, made for the American market)
China

This bowl displays portraits copied from a broadside printed in London in June 1768. The portraits depict the Englishmen John Wilkes (left), an outspoken advocate of political reform and American liberty, and Lord Mansfield (right), who tried to silence Wilkes with charges of libel. Satirical coats of arms surround their portraits. Wilkes is flanked by his close associates and defenders, while Lord Mansfield appears with George III and the devil by his side. American colonists viewed Wilkes as an avatar of liberty and free speech.

Status: On View, Gallery 166
Department: Arts of the Americas

Artist: Chinese export porcelain
Title: Punch Bowl
Place: China (Object made in:)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: c. 1769
Medium: Hard-paste porcelain, glaze, with enamels in colors, and gilding
Inscriptions: Inscribed recto, top-middle, above cartouche, in black enamel: "ARMS OF LIBERTY"; inscribed recto, bottom-middle, on banner, in black enamel: "Always Ready / in a / Good Cause"; inscribed recto, left-bottom, on banner, in black enamel: "Justice / Sans / Pitie".
Dimensions: 11.1 × 26.4 cm (4 3/8 × 10 3/8 in.)
Credit Line: Bequest of Frederick S. Colburn
Reference Number: 1958.239
IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.: https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/7830/manifest.json

Joseph J. Carbone, Boston, by 1954; sold to Frederick Standish Colburn (1878–1957), Evanston, IL, 1954; bequeathed to the Art Institute of Chicago, 1958.

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Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

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IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.