Grasshopper and Ant Plate

Title: Grasshopper and Ant Plate
Description: 1900? Faience plate 8" in diameter showing three scenes depicting GA. Numbered "2." A mark on the back seems to combine the letters "M" and "C" and says "déposé Fables Terre de Fer." $18 from Penny Hughes, Marysville, WA, Feb., '06.

This plate features, in its side panels, the backs of two men. One seems a prosperous farmer with mounds of hay nearby. The other has poorer clothing and strides away with a walking stick carrying something -- an instrument perhaps? -- as he goes. The central panel features two women. The "ant" holds an instrument for spinning, while the lovely younger grasshopper holds a lute. A small child is jut behind her.
Source: $18 from Penny Hughes, Marysville, WA, Feb., '06.
Date: 1900?
Subject: The Grasshopper and the Ant; Tableware; Plates; Creil & Montereau Colored