Marie Antoinette Serving Dish Ended Up In White House

By 1793, the French Revolution had ended the reign of Louis XVI and his queen Marie Antoinette

. Perhaps an early example of a "government surplus" sale, a piece of china owned by the French queen -- a striking 15.5-inch Paris porcelain serving dish in an unusual diamond shape -- was purchased in 1794 by then-American Minister to France James Monroe for another president-to-be, James Madison.

It was used at Madison's Virginia home, Montpelier, until the White House, burned by the British during the War of 1812, was refurbished. Sometime during Madison's second term, the china service was brought to the capital for use in the restored presidential mansion.

Although the history of the platter is well documented, nothing was known of the disposition of the china set following Madison's presidential years. "Presumably, it was returned to Montpelier," says Tom Slater, director of Dallas-based Heritage Auction Galleries' historical department. "However, as the Victorian inscription added to the present specimen reveals, at least this particular piece came into the possession of Mrs. John Quincy Adams, whose husband had occupied the White House from 1825 through 1829."

Now, the serving dish is up for auction, part of Heritage's political and Americana auction scheduled for May 17-18, 2010, in Dallas.

According to the inscription on the dish, Mrs. Adams obtained the china upon the death of Dolly Madison in 1849. "This demonstrates how highly Mrs. Madison prized the porcelain service, as the family had gone through severe financial hardship in later years, when many household furnishings and personal property of value had been sold off," Slater says. "But Dolly seems to have held onto the china until the end."

White House china is among the most collectable categories of presidential memorabilia, with individual examples selling at five-figure price levels, Slater says. Because of its unique character no pre-sale estimate has been set for the serving dish, but bidding will open at $20,000.

"This dish is perhaps the most provenanced example of White House china ever to reach the auction block," says Slater.

by: Hector Cantu

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