Königliche Porzellan-Manufaktur Berlin (KPM)
Porcelain vase with portraits of two emperors
1888 yr.
Height 65.5 cm
Porcelain casting, painting, gilding
Vase medley with lid. It is decorated with two Rocail oval frames on the trunk, enmeshed with laurel, reed, oak and blossoming branches, surrounding the portraits of William I and William II under the German imperial crowns, with gold embossed monograms at the bottom.
This vase can be accurately dated by a letter from Otto von Bismarck stating that he commissioned the work on behalf of Emperor William II on 26 October 1888. In his letter, the Chancellor thanks the Hamburg Senate Secretary Dr. Roelof H for his efforts to integrate the Hanseatic City into a customs union. He ordered the vase as the "eternal symbol of memory".