Antique porcelain perfume bottle with cavoting figures. Made 19th century, Germany or England.

Measures 3 3/4 inches high.

Round base with a central pillar, entirely covered with applied foliage and colourful flowers.

3 people and a dog are modelled in a continuous scene around the pillar. A chicken perches on a nest forming the cap / lid of the bottle.

The scene is very likely taken from the Commedia dell' Arte with a crouching Columbine in brightly spotted yellow sheet, the fond lover and a scurrilous knave hiding on the other side, holding his dog on a lead (Pierrot and Scaramouche ?). The extreme gestures and poses are typical of these amusing scenes.

The characters are all brightly dressed with handpainted detailing & gilding to their costumes, hair and facial features. The stopper, is in the form of a chicken sitting on a nest - one wing slightly stretched out as though she is either precariously perched or shocked at the shenanigans beneath her.

There is not a clear mark. There is a raised section under the base, but it is not legible.

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