Sneak behind the museum glass to discover the story of some incredible yet misunderstood objects; the opulent, intricate, gold crested crested (and often much maligned) Sèvres porcelain of the 17th Century.

Former director and curator at The Wallace Collection Ros Savill attempts something brave and unusual. Rather than telling us about another great modernist, cubist or abstract artist that we know we ought to appreciate, she makes us appreciate and even possibly fall in love with objects that have fallen way out of fashion and been aesthetically undervalued for years – 17th Century French decorative Arts.

She unravels the stories of some incredible and intricate objects, re-connecting us with the lives and stories of the artists and craftsmen who created them as well as the outrageous patrons who owned them: Madame de Pompadour, Louis XV, Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI as well as their foreign counterparts like Catherine the Great. We also hear how the French Revolutionaries actually preserved and adapted the Sèvres tradition to their new order, and how the English aristocracy collected these huge dinner services out of nostalgia for the ancient regime. In fact, they are still used by the British Royal family today.

Like the iPads of their day, these objects, ostentatious to modernist eyes, were the product of art and science coming together and creating something beautiful but also functional. Ros re-connects us with the fascinating lives and stories of the artists, artisans, painters and sculptors whose ingenuity, innovation and creativity went into creating some of the most incredible and incredibly expensive ice cream coolers vases or teapots of their day. We also see inside the factory, still open today, and witness the alchemic creation process for ourselves.

“We see the origins of Sèvres porcelain, in a seventeenth-century French aristocratic society yet to see the revolution that would take away these indulgences. With a piece of porcelain for every purpose, it’s more a study of the overly wealthy than anything else. It’s fun to see these luxurious, often superfluous items in all their over-the-top glory, and the playful tone of the documentary is a good match. It’s a good defence, and a surprisingly engaging one too.” – Time Out