Sold Ceramics
Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722
Other wares
Page 1
Around 1680, Emperor Kangxi (1662–1722) established his authority over all parts of China after a long period of civil strife. The porcelain factories in Jingdezhen that were demolished in 1675 resumed production and within a few years exports were booming. Chinese junks sailed to Batavia, bringing their porcelain to the market. From there, it was shipped to the Netherlands in VOC (Dutch East India Company, 1602–1799) vessels. However, private individuals bypassed the Company and also imported huge quantities of porcelain to Holland. In Europe, a change in dining habits and the introduction of tea and coffee created new demands. New varieties of Chinese export porcelain were produced, including all kinds of Western shapes. Porcelain, sometimes in miniature, was frequently used to decorate house interiors in Europe.
Much porcelain of this period is decorated in a clear, transparent underglaze blue. Popular decorations included the Buddhist lotus motif, a pheasant with long tail feathers on a rock amidst flowers, and the ‘Long Eliza’ with the 'Dancing Fool', the Dutch name for a Chinese lady and a small boy depicted in a garden.
Kangxi porcelain is very well made, with a thin body, a balanced shape and a smooth glaze without impurities. Cobalt blue oxide was subtly applied in varying degrees of saturation, suggesting depth and volume. The colour ranges from a silvery to a deep dark blue; in the best pieces the details and the craftsmanship are amazing. However, due to stricter controls by officials, the freedom and easy way of painting that was so characteristic of the preceding Transitional period now gave way to a more formal style with an emphasis on symmetry and centralism.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2012456
Bowl
China
c.1700
Height 72 mm (2.83 inch), diameter of rim 154 mm (6.06 inch), diameter of footring 55 mm (2.16 inch), weight 241 grams (8.50 ounce (oz.))
Bowl on footring, scalloped sides and rim. Decorated in underglaze blue with a landscape with two men on horseback hunting rabbits. On the bottom two rabbits resting near a rock. Round the inner rim a continuous lotus scroll border with lozenge motifs. Marked on the base with the six-character mark: Da Ming Cheng hua nian zhi, (Made during the Chenghua reign of the Great Ming dynasty), in a double circle, underglaze blue. (Davison 1994, cat. 1335)
It is often possible to distinguish blue-and-white porcelain for the European market from that from the Chinese home market with reference to pattern, shape or size. Allocation is for instance, straightforward where European motifs such as coats of arms or biblical scenes are encountered or European design prototypes in silver or other materials have been imitated. Obviously, items such as creamers, chocolate cups or tulip holders were unknown in day-to-day Chinese life and meant for export. Flat-flanged and deep plates were likewise purely produced for export in China, since food was traditionally eaten out of bowls there. Very large porcelains were intended for the closets and mantelpieces of the European upper classes, the only exception in Kangxi-period China being large-format fish bowls and jardinières. A great number of export porcelains were painted with classical Chinese motifs such as landscapes, plants or animals that met customers' wishes for exotic motifs. Such items were suitable for both markets. Blue-and-white export porcelain was of the highest quality during the Kangxi period and was at the very least on a par with, and in many cases actually excelled imperial blue-and-white porcelain. (Düsseldorf 2015, p.123)
The motif of hunting rabbits on horseback was popular on underglaze blue pieces of this period which sometimes show a group of men as here, sometimes a man and a woman. (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p.155, cat. 168)
For a similarly decorated bowl also dating from the Kangxi period, please see:
Four identically shaped and similarly sized and decorated bowls are in the collection of Augustus the Strong in Dresden and registered under the number P.O. (Porzellan Ostasien) 2955, 9266, 9310 and 9764. For these dishes, please see;
- SKD Online collection, PO. 1832.
- SKD Online collection, PO. 1833.
- SKD Online collection, PO. 1834.
- SKD Online collection, PO. 1835.
Condition: Some popped bubbles of glaze, caused by the firing process, three frits and two short hairlines all to the rim. A chip to the footring.
References:
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 168
SKD Online collection, PO. 1832
SKD Online collection, PO. 1833
SKD Online collection, PO. 1834
SKD Online collection, PO. 1835
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2012078
Rosewater sprinkler
China
c.1700
Height 169 mm (6.65 inch), diameter 78 mm (3.07 inch), diameter of mouthrim 11 mm (0.43 inch), diameter of footring 43 mm (1.69 inch), weight 231 grams (8.15 ounce (oz.))
Rosewater sprinkler on tall, spreading foot with deep recessed glazed base. A globular body with a long tapering neck, fitted with an silver mount (unmarked). Decorated in underglaze blue with around the foot a stylized lotus-leaves border. On the body four panels filled with flowering plants growing from taihu (garden) rocks. On the shoulder a ruyi and zig-zag lines-pattern border. The long tall neck with two flower sprays.
The shape draws on Persian metalwork designs from the 16th and 17th centuries. Fragrant rosewater (gulaul) was used for refreshment, cleaning and scenting at both religious and secular events in the Islamic world. In Western settlements all over Asia they were widely-used as well. (Düsseldorf 2015, p.276)
Rose water sprinklers, known as gulabpash, have been used in India since the Mughal period for the purpose of refreshing oneself by moistening one's face, washing hands after a meal or for sprinkling a visitor as a gesture of welcome. Dutch traders discovered them in India and subsequently ordered porcelain bottles in various designs to be made in China. These bottles were partly sold in the Ottoman Empire, where local silversmiths fashioned artistic stoppers for them. Today, rose water bottles are found in the Sultan's Collection in Istanbul as well as in some Dutch museums, for example the Princessehof in Leeuwarden or the Museum Boijmans van Beuningen. (Suebsman 2019, p.74)
Perfumation and thurification have a very long history and can be traced back to prehistoric times. For thurification various types of incense burners were and are used until this day. For perfumation, rose-water was used that was stored and applied in specially made sprinklers. (META-Museum: Chinese Export Silver for the Islamic World, (A. von Ferscht, www.chinese-export-silver.com))
Rosewater sprinklers were are known to be decorated in underglaze blue, in 'Red & Gold' or 'Rouge de Fer' , or the body was (partly) covered in powder blue, Batavia brown or some other monochrme colour. At first they were only exported and used as such in Batavia later on in the West they were often fitted with metal or silver mounts. In the Netherlands they served as curiosities and decorative items. (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p136)
Condition: Some discolouration of the glaze just above the shoulder, caused by the firing process and a tiny fleabite to the foot.
References:
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 140
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2012564
Bowl
China
c.1700
Height 77 mm (2.71 inch), diameter of rim 157 mm (4.92 inch), diameter of footring 60 mm (1.97 inch), weight 175 grams (6.17 ounce (oz.))
Bowl or klapmuts on footring with a spreading flat rim. Decorated in underglaze blue on the outside with a continuous garden scene with a lady playing with a little boy and two laddies standing at a scholar's desk and swirling clouds with taihu (garden) rocks and a large banana plant. On the bottom a little boy dancing in a garden landscape with swirling clouds in a double concentric band. The sides are undecorated and on the rim a trellis pattern border with four reserves filled with peaches. Marked on the base with the six-character mark: Da Ming Cheng hua nian zhi, (Prepared during the Chenghua reign of the Great Ming Dynasty (1465-1487)), in a double circle, underglaze blue.
Bowls of this shape with a flat rim are traditionally called klapmuts in Dutch, comparing the shape with a cap with flaps. Rinaldi states that they were specially developed to meet a demand from European customers, who wanted to be able to rest their spoons in the bowl without damaging the edge. In fact, the form was already well-known, not as shallow bowls, but asl late 15th-early 16th century large and fairly deep dishes in underglaze blue or as Song and early Ming celadon saucers and dishes. The klapmuts is just another variety in the gradual development of this type. This decoration shows one of the most popular motifs of that time, the slender Chinese woman, holding a flower. In Dutch she was called a Lange Lijs, which became "Long Eliza" in English. (Rinaldi 1989, p.118), (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p.60 & p.101)
The philosopher (Mengzi (also: Mencius, 370-290BC) is considered the second-greatest sage of China after Confucius. There is a saying in China, mengu sanqian (Mengzi's mother moved three time), meaning that a family simply has to move house if the surroundings of the home harm the development of a child's character, Legend has it that after the father's death. Mengzi's family moved near to the graveyard in order to be close to the father's grave. Soon Mengzi and the children in the neighbourhood started to imitate mourners. The mother did not think this a suitable atmosphere for a Confucian education and moved to the vicinity of a marketplace, where Mengzi imitated the shouts of the stallholders. At long last the mother moved to live in the vicinity of a school, where Mengzi tried to be like the teachers and eventually became a scholar himself. The number 'Three' in the saying of course does not mean exactly three, but 'many' moves instead. From the various versions of the story, this bowl depicts a fight between little Mengzi and a boy next door as the reason for moving. Hence the scene on the bowl exemplifies motherly care. (Suebsman 2019, p.38)
Condition: Two fleabites to the footring, a hairline and two restored frits to the rim.
References:
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 42 & 91
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2012159
Candlestick
China
1690-1700
Height 55 mm (2.17 inch), diameter of rim 65 mm (2.56 inch), diameter of footring 51 mm (2.00 inch), weight 86 grams (3.03 ounce (oz.))
Candlestick on a spreading doomed foot, cylindrical stem, tall sides. Decorated in underglaze blue with two groups of flowerings plants round the foot and a continuous upturned lotus leaves pattern border on the cylindrical stem. On the sides two wide spread flower sprays. Marked on the base with the single character mark: Yu, (Jade (Yuan to Qing)), in underglaze blue.
The Yu, 'jade', character mark is traditionally called the F-mark in the Netherlands and is very common on good-quality blue and white Kangxi export porcelain. (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p.115)
Candlesticks were ordered by the Dutch as early as the Transitional period and again during the reign of Qianlong, when they were made in the Louis XV and XVI styles, but Kangxi candlesticks are surprisingly rare and thus far only a few varieties are known. Their shapes are derived from silver, pewter or brass models. (Howard 1994, pp.218-219, Jörg & Van Campen 1997, pp.258-259)
Condition: A popped bubble of glaze, caused by the firing process and a V-shaped hairline to the rim.
References:
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p.115 & pp.258-259
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2011060
Deep beaker
China
c.1700
Height 127 mm (5.00 inch), diameter of rim 60 mm (2.36 inch), diameter of footring 39 mm (1.54 inch), weight 149 grams (5.26 ounce (oz.))
Deep beaker, splayed foot, knopped domed base, a flat knob between the foot and the elongated upright body with a slightly spreading mouthrim. Decorated in underglaze blue with, so-called, criss-cross hatching lines technique, on the foot a scroll of single leaves. Round the body petal-shaped panels filled with stylised wisteria in hatching lines. Around the waist, the outer and inner rim a zig-zag lines pattern border. The original cover is missing. Marked on the base with the symbol mark: Artemisia leaf, underglaze blue.
These criss-cross hatching lines are not a Chinese way of painting on porcelain and may have been influenced by the Dutch. This technique was short-lived for it mostly occurs on blue-and-white export wares around 1700. It occurs on teacups and saucers, beakers and small jars with covers, garnitures and other items. The style was short lived, disappearing in the early 18th century. (Jörg & Flecker 2001, pp. 68-69)
The function of these beakers is not clear. In the late 19th and early 20th century they were called 'cigar beakers', but this was obvious not their original use. As the covers may have to serve to keep the contents warm, it is suggested here that they could have been used for hot chocolate. Cocoa was first brought to Europe by the Spaniards from Mexico in the 1st half of the 16th century. From Spain the cocoa beans were traded to Italy and The Netherlands, First used as a medicine later chocolate had become a fashionable drink by 1700 and, along with the tall, wide cups and covers in Japanese porcelain these beakers might have been another version of a vessel for this drink. Unfortunately, there seem to be no paintings or prints showing such a beaker in use, nor do Dutch East India Company, (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie, VOC), documents give more detailed information. (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, pp.116-117), (Jörg & Flecker 2001, pp.67-68)
For a similarly decorated deep beakers, please see:
- Porcelain and the Dutch East India Company, as recorded in the Dagh-registers of Batavia castle, those of Hirado and Deshima and other contemporary papers 1602-1682, (T. Volker, Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde, E.J. Brill, Leiden 1954, reprint 1971), Pl. XI, cat. 19.
- Porcelain from the Vung Tau Wreck, The Hallstrom Excavation. ( C.J.A. Jörg / M. Flecker, Sun Tree Publishing Ltd, United Kingdom, 2001), p.68 Fig. 56,
- The Vung Tau Cargo. Chinese export porcelain, auction sale catalogue Christie's Amsterdam, 7/8 April, Amsterdam 1992, p. 22-23 lot numbers 64-72.
- 300 Treasures, (F. Suchomel, Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague, Prague, 2015), p.154, cat. 40.
Condition: A J-shaped hairline and some glaze frits and chips to the rim.
References:
Volker 1954, reprint 1971, Pl. XI, cat. 19
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 117
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2011628
Covered jar
China
c.1700
Height including cover 178 mm (7.01 inch), height excluding cover 129 mm (5.08 inch), diameter of mouthrim 72 mm (2.83 inch), diameter of footring 92 mm (3.62 inch), weight with cover 649 grams (22.89 ounce (oz.)), weight cover 152 grams (5.36 ounce (oz.))
Cylindrical covered jar on footring with a glazed base. Fitted with gilt-bronze mounts and a floral decorated gilt-bronze cover with shaped finial. The original cover is missing. Decorated in underglaze blue with three panels filled with a flower head and leafy scrolls alternating with leafy scrolls. Around the rim a border with three florets between scrolls The cover is decorated with leafy scrolls. On the base a double circle in underglaze blue.
Such covered jars, called doppotten in Dutch, dop meaning 'cover', are typical of the assortment for the Dutch market. They are still to be found in private and public collections, usually ribbed, painted in underglaze blue and showing a great variety of decorations. (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p.111)
For similarly shaped and decorated covered jars, please see:
Condition: Perfect.
References:
Lunsingh Scheurleer 1980, cat. 140 & 141
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 107
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2011022
Bowl
China
c.1700
Height 78 mm (2.71 inch), diameter of rim 157 mm (4.92 inch), diameter of footring 63 mm (1.97 inch)
Bowl or klapmuts on footring with a spreading flat rim. Decorated in underglaze blue on the outside with a continuous scene of a "Long Eliza" figure holding a flowering stem and playing with three little boys in a fenced garden and a "Long Eliza" figure holding a flowering stem, standing near a taihu rock and a banana plant. Around the rim auspicious symbols alternating with flaming ruyi heads.On the bottom inside a little boy in a riverscape encircled by a double, concentric band the sides are undecorated and on the rim a trellis pattern border with four reserves filled with peaches. Marked on the base with the six-character mark: Da Ming Cheng hua nian zhi, (Prepared during the Chenghua reign of the Great Ming Dynasty (1465-1487)), in a double circle, underglaze blue.
Bowls of this shape with a flat rim are traditionally called klapmuts in Dutch, comparing the shape with a cap with flaps. Rinaldi states that they were specially developed to meet a demand from European customers, who wanted to be able to rest their spoons in the bowl without damaging the edge. In fact the form was already well-known, not as shallow bowls, but asl late 15th-early 16th century large and fairly deep dishes in underglaze blue or as Song and early Ming celadon saucers and dishes. The klapmuts is just another variety in the gradual development of this type. This decoration shows one of the most popular motifs of that time, the slender Chinese woman, holding a flower. In Dutch she was called a Lange Lijs, which became "Long Eliza" in English. (Rinaldi 1989, p.118), (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p.60 & p.101)
The philosopher (Mengzi (also: Mencius, 370-290BC) is considered the second-greatest sage of China after Confucius. There is a saying in China, mengu sanqian (Mengzi's mother moved three time), meaning that a family simply has to move house if the surroundings of the home harm the development of a child's character, Legend has it that after the father's death. mendzi's family moved near to the graveyard in order to be close to the father's grave. Soon Mengzi and the children in the neighbourhood started to imitate mourners. The mother did not think this a suitable atmosphere for a Confucian education and moved to the vicinity of a marketplace, where Mengzi imitated the shouts of the stallholders. At long last the mother moved to live in the vicinity of a school, where Mengzi tried to be like the teachers and eventually became a scholar himself. The number 'Three' in the saying of course does not mean exactly three, but 'many' moves instead. From the various versions of the story, this bowl depicts a fight between little Mengzi and a boy next door as the reason for moving. Hence the scene on the bowl exemplifies motherly care. (Suebsman 2019, p.38)
Condition: A fleabite, frit and a frit with a consolidated hairline to the rim
References:
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 42 & 91
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2012284
Rosewater sprinkler
China
c.1700
Height 178 mm (7.01 inch), diameter 73 mm (2.87 inch), diameter of mouthrim 8 mm (0.31 inch), diameter of footring 41 mm (1.61 inch), weight 248 grams (8.75 ounce (oz.))
Rosewater sprinkler on tall, spreading foot with deep recessed glazed base. A globular body with a long tapering neck. Decorated in underglaze blue with two panels one filled with a flowering peony and insects in flight te other with flowering aster and insects in flight. On the shoulder four groups of leaves and round the neck flowering aster and a insect in flight.
The shape draws on Persian metalwork designs from the 16th and 17th centuries. Fragrant rosewater (gulaul) was used for refreshment, cleaning and scenting at both religious and secular events in the Islamic world. In Western settlements all over Asia they were widely-used as well. (Düsseldorf 2015, p.276)
Rose water sprinklers, known as gulabpash, have been used in India since the Mughal period for the purpose of refreshing oneself by moistening one's face, washing hands after a meal or for sprinkling a visitor as a gesture of welcome. Dutch traders discovered them in India and subsequently ordered porcelain bottles in various designs to be made in China. These bottles were partly sold in the Ottoman Empire, where local silversmiths fashioned artistic stoppers for them. Today, rose water bottles are found in the Sultan's Collection in Istanbul as well as in some Dutch museums, for example the Princessehof in Leeuwarden or the Museum Boijmans van Beuningen. (Suebsman 2019, p.74)
Perfumation and thurification have a very long history and can be traced back to prehistoric times. For thurification various types of incense burners were and are used until this day. For perfumation, rose-water was used that was stored and applied in specially made sprinklers. (META-Museum: Chinese Export Silver for the Islamic World, (A. von Ferscht, www.chinese-export-silver.com))
Rosewater sprinklers were are known to be decorated in underglaze blue, in 'Red & Gold' or 'Rouge de Fer' , or the body was (partly) covered in powder blue, Batavia brown or some other monochrme colour. At first they were only exported and used as such in Batavia later on in the West they were often fitted with metal or silver mounts. In the Netherlands they served as curiosities and decorative items. (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p136)
Condition: Some flaked of pieces of glaze on the bulge, the body and the foot, caused by the firing process.
References:
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 140
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2010856
Bowl
China
c.1700
Height 80 mm (3.15 inch), diameter of rim 165 mm (6.50 inch), diameter of footring 60 mm (2.36 inch)
Octagonal bowl on footring with spreading sides and a lobbed rim. Decorated in underglaze blue on the outside around the foot a ruyi head on a lotus scroll pattern border the panels are filled with flowering plants, including bamboo and peony. On the bottom a flowering peony plant growing from a taihu rock. Around the inner rim a continuing lotus scroll. Marked on the base with the six-character mark: Qi Yu bao ding zhi zhen, (Precious object of rare jade among treasured vessels), in a double circle, underglaze blue.
Condition: A tiny firing flaw, three frits one with a connected hairline and a chip to the rim.
Reference:
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2010571
Bowl
China
1700-1720
Height 69 mm (2.71 inch), diameter of rim 125 mm (4.92 inch), diameter of footring 50 mm (1.97 inch)
Bowl or klapmuts on footring, spreading flat rim with scalloped edge. Decorated in underglaze blue. On the outside four panels alternately decorated with a flowering plant growing fron a taihu (garden) rock and precious objects. On the bottom a flowering plant and on the sides four panels filled with flowering plant. On the reverse rim four florets between scrolls. Marked on the base with the single character mark: Yu, (Jade (Yuan to Qing)), in a double circle, underglaze blue.
The shape and the outside decoration resemble those of Kraak Porselein klapmutsen of the first half of the 17th century. When the export trade was resumed in the 1680s and the Dutch became good customers again, there was a tendency to revive the traditional Kraak porcelain shapes and the style of painting with decoration arranged in wide and narrow panels. Some pieces are more or less close imitations, others, like this bowl, are hybrids, combining some Kraak characteristics with the new Kangxi patterns. Most examples are painted in underglaze blue, but the type is also known from a few, rare famille verte pieces. The fashion was short lived as new shapes and decorations soon took over. The Yu, "jade", character mark is traditionally called the F-mark in the Netherlands and is very common on good-quality blue and white Kangxi export porcelain. (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p.105 & p.115)
For similarly shaped and decorated bowls, please see:
- Kraak porcelain. A moment in the history of trade, (M. Rinaldi, Bamboo Publishing Ltd, London 1989), p.232, Pl.295.
- Chinese Ceramics in the Collection of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, The Ming and Qing Dynasties, (C.J.A. Jörg in collaboration with J. van Campen, Phlip Wilson in association with The Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, London 1997), pp.104-105, cat. 98.
Condition: A hairline to the rim.
References:
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 98, p.105 & p.115
Price: Sold.
More pictures of object 2012190, another identically, shaped, sized and decorated, sold bowl >>
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2011331
Spice dish
China
1700-1720
Height 27 mm (1.06 inch), diameter width 117 mm (4.61 inch), diameter length 137 mm (5.39 inch), weight 154 grams (5.43 ounce (oz.))
A single spice dish of tapered lotus leaf-shape. Decorated in underglaze blue with a ´Long Eliza´ figure with three little boys in a fenced garden landscape. On the interior walls four sprays of foliated scrolls. The reverser is undecorated.
This spice dish was once part of a Chine de commande spices set, comprising of an eight pointed star-shaped central dish surrounded by eight tapered lotus leaf-shaped radial form dishes.
The philosopher (Mengzi (also: Mencius, 370-290BC) is considered the second-greatest sage of China after Confucius. There is a saying in China, mengu sanqian (Mengzi's mother moved three time), meaning that a family simply has to move house if the surroundings of the home harm the development of a child's character, Legend has it that after the father's death. mendzi's family moved near to the graveyard in order to be close to the father's grave. Soon Mengzi and the children in the neighbourhood started to imitate mourners. The mother did not think this a suitable atmosphere for a Confucian education and moved to the vicinity of a marketplace, where Mengzi imitated the shouts of the stallholders. At long last the mother moved to live in the vicinity of a school, where Mengzi tried to be like the teachers and eventually became a scholar himself. The number 'Three' in the saying of course does not mean exactly three, but 'many' moves instead. From the various versions of the story, this baluster vase depicts a fight between little Mengzi and a boy next door as the reason for moving. Hence the scene on the baluster vase exemplifies motherly care. (Suebsman 2019, p.38)
Slender Chinese women in a garden may reflect a literary source, or may merely be depictions of beautiful ladies, but in combination with a dancing boy, his arm in the long sleeves of his garment, this motif probably comes from a deeper, older cultural layer. As recent research has shown, the dancing boy is connected to New Year's festivities and exorcism practises. In this context, the woman may be a personification of Xiwangmu, The Queen Mother of the West and a symbol of immortality. In the Netherlands, the lady and the boy were known by their Dutch names Lange Lijs and Zotje, names that were taken over in English as 'Long Eliza' and 'the Fool'. They were the epitome of Chinese exoticism for the Western beholder and served as a model for numerous imitations in chinoiserie settings. (Jörg 2011/2, p. 37)
In the Age Looxma Ypeij (1833-1892) collection, Princessehof Leeuwarden nationaal keramiekmuseum, one of the notable Chine de Commande objects is a spices set comprising of an eight pointed star-shaped central dish surrounded by eight tapered lotus leaf-shaped radial form dishes. At first sight one would identify this set as Dutch (Delft), infact the set is Chinese. Clearly this set is a Chinese copy of a Dutch (Delft) original. These Dutch Delftse specerijensets (Delft spices sets) were part of large dinner services of which 17th century examples are known. Around 1685 an identically shaped set with an eight pointed star-shaped central dish surrounded by eight smaller dishes was made in Delft by De Witte Starre for Wenzel Ferdinand Prins Lobkowitcz van Bilina (1656-1697). This Dutch Delft spices set is completely identical to the extremely rare and complete Chinese set in the Looxma collection. (Pohle 2006, pp.6-13)
For an identically decorated complete spice dishes set, please see:
For an identically decorated dish, please see:
Condition: Two tiny shallow glaze rough spots to the rim and some unglazed spots to the exterior wall.
References:
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 91 & 116
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2011561
Miniature covered bowl
China
c.1700
Height with cover 62 mm (2.44 inch), height without cover 40 mm (1.57 inch), diameter 53 mm (2.09 inch), diameter box rim 48 mm (1.89 inch), diameter cover rim 42 mm (1.65 inch), diameter of footring 30 mm (1.18 inch), weight 80 grams (2.82 ounce (oz.))
Miniature covered bowl on footring. Steep sides, domed cover with flattened knob. The base is glazed. Decorated in underglaze-blue with on the body four panels showing a flowerpot alternating with a "Long Eliza" figure seated in a fenced garden holding a twig alternating with flowering plants. On the knob a single flower head.
This rare shape illustrates the variety of objects Chinese potters were producing for export during this period. Stimulated by competing private traders, they rang the changes on forms and decorations in such a way that new models could appear on the European markets almost every year. In the Netherlands, these slender women engaged in some form of activity in a landscape or on a veranda, were called lange lijzen, translated in English as Long Eliza's. (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p.101). (Jörg 2002/2, p.96)
Condition: A firing flaw to the inner rim.
References:
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 94
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 201084
Jar
China
c.1700
Height 65 mm (2.56 inch), diameter 60 mm (2.36 inch), diameter of mouthrim 17 mm (0.67 inch), diameter of footring 35 mm (1.38 inch), weight 83 grams (2.93 ounce (oz.))
Jar of moulded form on a flat unglazed base. On the shoulder a short, unglazed, cylindrical mouth. The original cover is missing. Decorated in underglaze blue with on all six panels flowering branches around the neck a double concentric band.
Condition: Perfect.
Price: Sold.
Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1
Object 2012079
Shell-shaped dish
China
1705-1720
Height 37 mm (1.46 inch), dimensions 152 mm (5.98 inch) x 173 mm (1.93 inch), weight 233 grams (8.22 ounce (oz.))
Shell-shaped dish with moulded ribbing, the front with a flat rim. The base is unglazed, except for the part round the rim. Decorated in underglaze blue with flower in a central roundel surrounded by peony and chrysanthemum sprays. On the flat rim a chrysanthemum spray. Around the rim a zig-zag lines-pattern border.
At the end of the 17th century the trend in export wares was undoubtedly for special objects shaped after Western models. The Portuguese had already started ordering such pieces in the 16th century, while the Dutch had ordered Western tableware and other commande pieces since 1630s through their trading station on Taiwan. This was no longer possible after c.1645: internal wars in China resulted in the stagnation of the maritime trade in porcelain and Japanese porcelain factories took over at the end of the 1650s, including the production of Western models. When the Chinese resumed porcelain exports in the early 1680's such commande had become a standard part of the assortments. The Dutch East India Company, (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie, VOC) ceased buying Chinese porcelain for the Dutch market in the early 1690s. The private European merchants who took over competed and new more exclusive shapes were needed for the West. (Jörg 2011/2, p.145)
Such shell-shaped dishes usually occur in famille verte and often have the same decoration. They are more rare in underglaze blue and Chinese Imari. It is unknown if this shape was part of the standard Chinese assortment or whether it was made to order from a European model for export to the West. They were probably used to serve shellfish in The Netherlands. Imitations in European porcelain, for example, in Dutch Loosdrecht porcelain, are not rare. (Jörg 2002/2, p.115), (Jörg 2011/2, p.154)
For identically shell-shaped dishes decorated in Chinese Imari, please see:
- China for the West. Chinese Porcelain and other Decorative Arts for Export illustrated from the Mottahedeh Collection, (D.S. Howard & J. Ayers, Philip Wilson Publishers for Sotheby Parke Bernet Publications, London 1978), vol. 1, pp.137-138, cat. 116.
- Chinese export porcelain in North America, (J. McClure Mudge, Riverside Book Company, Inc., New York, 2000), page 156, cat. 239.
For identically shell-shaped dishes decorated in famille verte enamels, please see:
- Chinese export porcelain. Chine de Commande, (D.F. Lunsingh Scheurleer, London 1974), cat. 119.
- Chinese Export Porcelain. Chine de Commande from the Royal Museum of Art and History in Brussels, exhibition catalogue Hong Kong Museum of Art, (C.J.A. Jörg, The Urban Council, Hong Kong, 1989), pp.62-63, cat. 8.
- Chinese Ceramics in the Collection of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, The Ming and Qing Dynasties, (C.J.A. Jörg in collaboration with J. van Campen, Philip Wilson in association with The Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, London 1997), p.270, cat. 313.
- Jan Menze van Diepen Stichting. Selectie uit de collectie Oosterse keramiek (Jan Menze van Diepen Foundation. A Selection from the Collection of Oriental Ceramics), (C.J.A. Jörg, Jan Menze van Diepen Stichting / Jan Menze van Diepen Foundation, Slochteren 2002, p.115, cat. 77.
- Famille Verte, Chinese Porcelain in Green Enamels, (C.J.A. Jörg, Schoten, 2011), p.154, cat. 152.
Condition: Some popped bubbles of glaze, caused by the firing process, to the rim. A firing flaw and some frits to the moulded ribbing on the base. Glaze rough spots to both edges, one with a shallow glaze chip.
References:
Lunsingh Scheurleer 1974, cat.119
Howard & Ayers 1978, vol. 1, cat. 116
Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 313
Price: Sold.
create websites