The Princess Royal found a new outlet for her artistic talents in the decoration of porcelain following her marriage to Frederick, the Hereditary Prince of Württemberg, in 1797. The porcelain factory at the royal palace of Ludwigsburg, near Stuttgart, supplied the Princess with blanks ready for her to adorn with her own designs. The decorated pieces – inscribed with her initials C.A.M. (for Charlotte Augusta Matilda) and the date – would be fired in her own kiln, in the grounds of the palace.

This particular example, inspired by the flower paintings of Mary Moser, includes two panels of classical vases filled with roses, tulips and other flowers, all painted in grey on a pink ground. The design is reminiscent of drawings made in the 1790s (such as the one reproduced below) which were (and still are) hung at Frogmore House, Windsor. It is likely that this vase (and its matching pair) was sent as a present to her father George III, as an earlier letter of 1805 declares her intention to send ‘some flower pots after my design which I hope Your Majesty will place in your palace’. Other examples of the Princess’s artistry are displayed in the Closet named after her, at Frogmore.