This exceptional plate was sold to George IV as part of the Sèvres service commissioned by Louis XVI. On 8 January 1790, Louis XVI did indeed purchase from the manufactory ‘1 assiette animaux’ at a cost of 300 livres, which was not, however, part of the service. It would seem that during the preparations for the Revolutionary sales, the plate was inadvertently classified with the service. The painted scenes of animals can be confidently attributed to Pierre-Nicolas Pithou l’aîné (active 1759-90), who paid close attention to detail and developed a distinctive palette of opaque greens and browns and a rich olive green. The sources for the scenes have been traced to a number of studies of animals by François Desportes (1661-1743). Following the death of the artist, the collection of sketches and paintings in his studio was acquired by Louis XVI at the behest of his directeur général des Bâtiments et Manufactures, the comte d’Angiviller, and was despatched to Sèvres in April 1785. Surprisingly, little use was made of this collection at the manufactory. Text adapted from French Porcelain for English Palaces, Sèvres from the Royal Collection, London, 2009