Dresden green porcelain ram’s head lamp base vase with finial

This finely modelled Dresden porcelain lamp base is styled as a covered neoclassical urn or vase, richly decorated in a vivid “Dresden green” ground with hand‑painted flowers and lavish gilding. Standing approximately 29 cm high to the top of the removable brass finial, the piece successfully combines its original function as an electric or oil lamp base with the elegance of an 18th‑century style decorative vase.

The body is of ovoid urn form rising from a waisted socle and square, moulded plinth. The plinth and stem are entirely enamelled in a strong apple‑green overglaze, a colour closely associated with late‑19th and early‑20th‑century Dresden and Meissen‑style wares. Fine raised and painted gilt scrollwork trails around the foot and stem, accenting the stepped mouldings and providing a luxurious contrast to the green ground. The front and reverse of the bowl are reserved with shaped white cartouches edged in burnished gilding. Within each reserve is a beautifully executed bouquet of polychrome garden flowers, including roses, tulips and mixed field blossoms, painted in the detailed manner for which Dresden decorators are renowned.

On either side of the vessel, the handles take the form of applied ram’s heads, crisply modelled in white porcelain. The curling horns and selected details of the fleece are highlighted in gold, creating striking sculptural terminals that emphasise the vase’s neoclassical inspiration. The upper shoulder is vertically fluted and picked out in gilt to simulate lobed metalwork, leading the eye toward the domed cover.

The removable cover is enamelled in white and enriched with scrolling gilded foliate motifs and a running wave border around the lower edge. At the centre rises a threaded metal tube designed to accept the decorative finial. The finial itself is cast in brass in the form of a stylised pine‑cone or acorn, echoing classical furniture mounts. It screws into a sleeve that fits over the tube, allowing easy removal for cleaning or for access to lamp fittings.

The plinth is drilled through the front and base, and a metal fixing nut is visible on the underside, indicating that the vase was purpose‑made or later adapted as a lamp base. These features make it ideal for re‑wiring to current electrical standards or for display purely as a decorative urn. The underside bears a painted blue Dresden mark beneath the glaze, consistent with 20th‑century Dresden decorating studios that emulated Meissen quality and style, confirming the piece’s origin in the historic Saxon porcelain tradition.

Condition from the images appears very good: the green ground retains a glossy, even finish; the gilt details show only minor rubbing commensurate with age and handling; the ram’s heads and floral panels appear free from obvious chips or cracks. The brass finial and metal mounts show light age patination, enhancing the antique character of the lamp base. Collectors of German porcelain, decorators seeking a statement lamp, and enthusiasts of neoclassical revival design will all appreciate the sculptural quality, vibrant colour and meticulous hand‑painting of this Dresden porcelain vase‑form lamp base.