194. Meissen porcelain paste-on-paste covered vase, circa 1890-1900 A Meissen covered pâte-sur-pâte vase, circa 1890-1900 Decorated with a water nymph surrounded by waterlilies, the reverse with four stylised fishes in copper red, the rim with dragonflies in underglaze-blue and turquoise, picked out in gilding, the domed cover with starburst gilding around the finial, 23cm high, crossed swords in underglaze-blue to the base, incised H127, impressed 20 Meissen's attempts at pâte-sur-pâte during the last decade of the 19th century were spurred by the 1900 Paris Exposition Universelle and the burgeoning Art Nouveau movement in the decorative arts. Some 1,329 items were produced for the exhibition, of which sixty with pâte-sur-pâte decoration. The Meissen presentation was a success, garnering critical acclaim and a Grand Prix award, with particular praise reserved for the high-fired coloured pâte-sur-pâte pieces. Notably, the Musée national de céramique (Sèvres) and Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe (Hamburg) acquired Art Nouveau vases for their collections. For more information on Meissen pâte-sur-pâte, see Bernard Bumpus, Pâte-sur-pâte: the Art of Ceramic Relief Decoration 1849-1992, 1992, pp. 86-88.