'Medusa' porcelain tea service, 20th century

Notes

The fourteen-piece service comprises: a teapot and cover, creamer, covered sugar bowl, and eleven teacups with matching saucers. Each piece is decorated in the ‘Medusa’ pattern with gilt borders and printed Rosenthal and Versace marks to the underside.

Designed by Gianni Versace in collaboration with Rosenthal, the ‘Medusa’ pattern reflects Versace’s distinctive use of classical imagery, opulent gilding and bold decorative borders. The Medusa emblem, one of the house’s most recognisable motifs, draws on Greco-Roman mythology and became central to Versace’s visual identity, symbolising beauty, allure and power. Rosenthal’s collaboration with Versace translated the fashion house’s luxurious aesthetic into porcelain tableware, combining refined German manufacture with the theatrical glamour associated with the Versace brand.