The windows of Momus: anatomical decorative art in the eighteenth century
Date
2023
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
In Greek mythology the god of satire, Momus, mocked Hephaestus for not providing humans with a window to see their hearts and souls. Increased understanding of the human body beginning in the Renaissance and surging during the Age of Enlightenment resolved this problem, as anatomy was the rage in eighteenth century Europe. In the Winterthur Collection, a partial, and very unique hot chocolate set made of Qing Dynasty white Chinese export porcelain is painted with depictions of various medical illustrations including the dissection of a man's torso on a saucer, three scenes of a fetus in utero on a chocolate cup and a cover inscribed with a text in Dutch, identifying it as "The Anatomy Tableware, painted by Pleun Pira, 1761." Pleun Pira was a ceramic painter in Amsterdam, one of the very few who signed his work. In addition to this, a silver trophy cup, given to Dr William Hunter, the renowned British anatomist also in 1761 illustrates an elaborate dissection scene. My research explores how these two examples of material culture, while outwardly disparate in form, materiality, and image, share the cultural zeitgeists of this time and reflect the globalization of the modern world. Their paths into modernity were shaped by eighteenth century networks that stretched across geographical and cultural boundaries.
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Keywords
Anatomy, Pira, Pleun, Porcelain, Hunter, William