Lambeth or Bristol , A delftware plate circa 1785, tonal blu...

Hammer

£880

Lambeth or Bristol , A delftware plate circa 1785, tonal blue decoration depicting the balloon flight of Jean Pierre Blanchard over Stockwell Road Lambeth, depicting figures in  'gondola' within hatched band border, diameter 23.5cm. 

Provenance:  Sotheby's 1st October 1991, Lot 134; John Philip Kassebaum Collection; Joseph V Vixcarra Collection.

Jean-Pierre Blanchard, a French balloonist, was born July 4, 1753. The Golden Age of Ballooning began on  Nov. 21, 1783, when  Pilâtre de Rozier and François d'Arlandes soared aloft in a hot-air balloon made by the Montgolfier brothers.  They launched from the  Château de la Muette just outside Paris and floated for some 5 miles.  Just over a week later, Jacques-Alexandre Charles and Nicolas Robert ascended to 3000 feet from the Tuileries in Paris, this time in a hydrogen balloon.  Blanchard was caught up immediately in balloon frenzy, designed his own hydrogen balloon, complete with "oars" to swim through the air and an always-open parachute to slow descent should the gas bag spring a leak, and headed for the skies.  He made his first ascent in a hydrogen balloon on Mar. 2, 1784, lifting off from the Champ de Mars.  Blanchard travelled with his balloon to England in August of 1784 and began to organize public ascents there.  He made one ascent from London, for which (so it is recorded) 400,000 people turned out.  He made the ascent with an English physician, who was added to the gondola to increase local interest. An engraving recorded the event, which took place on Oct. 16, 1784.  Blanchard then ascended with another physician, John Jeffries on Nov. 30, 1784, and this time they travelled all the way from London to Kent in preparation for their later Chanel crossing to Calais from Dover.

More Information

Fine star cracks, chips to rim, one larger chips has been overpainted.