Pair of old Boulenger Choisy-le-Roi soup plates – Gallic decor

A superb pair of fine earthenware soup plates by B. & Cᵉ – Boulenger & Compagnie, Choisy-le-Roi, an iconic late 19th-century manufacturer. Their Gaulois decoration, finely printed in cobalt blue, illustrates the full expertise of the Boulenger workshops: a symmetrical composition of scrolls, Greek key, and stylized foliage, of rare elegance. The two plates bear slightly different stamps—B. & Cᵉ Gaulois C 8 M for one, B. & Cᵉ simple for the other—evident of two firings of the same decoration around 1880–1895. Stamped by Boulenger & Cie, founded in Choisy-le-Roi in the 19th century, one of the most renowned in France for the finesse of its printed decorations and the quality of its semi-vitrified clays. Beautiful vintage condition: despite three chips on the rim in total, micro-scratches from use, and a slightly faded pattern in one spot on one, they retain a luminous enamel and a deep blue of great freshness (see photos). Diameter 22.5 cm, height 2.5 cm. Two charming and collectible pieces, perfect for a table with a historic cottage feel.