Vase (one of a pair) ca. 1762 Chelsea Porcelain Manufactory No works better express the rich style characteristic of the porcelain produced at Chelsea during the Gold Anchor period (1758-69) than these two elaborately decorated vases.1 Their ambitious enamel painting, extensive gilding, sculptural embellishments, and large scale reflect the taste associated with Gold Anchor Chelsea at its most lavish, and also indicate the strong influence of Sèvres porcelain from the late 1750s and 1760s. The products of the French royal manufactory from these years are distinguished by their vivid ground colors, richly applied gilding, and masterly enamel decoration, as well as by the use of novel shapes. Because the Sèvres factory became the taste setter in Europe following the decline of the Meissen factory during the Seven Years’ War (1756-63), numerous porcelain factories, including Chelsea, looked to Sèvres for inspiration. The deep-blue ground color of these vases closely copies a similar blu