Father Time

Dateca. 1745

Label TextThis figure was designed to hold a pocket watch. Meissen’s version of Father Time strides relentlessly along, appropriately bearing a watch holder formed in an asymmetrical rococo shape. He also carries one of his familiar attributes, a scythe. This personification of Father Time came from early confusion between the Greeks’ word for time, chronos, and their old god of agriculture, Cronus, who carried a scythe.

Object number91.103

Photo CreditPhoto: Paul Macapia

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Porcelain Stories: From China to Europe, Feb. 17 - May 7, 2000.Published ReferencesHarding, Beverly. The Secret of Porcelain: A Family Guide. Seattle, Wash.: Seattle Art Museum, 2000; pp. 16, 29.

Credit LineGift of Martha and Henry Isaacson

Dimensions14 1/2 in. (36.8 cm), height

MediumHard paste porcelain