Lot 1
  • 1

A RARE ROSE-PINK ENAMELLED CUP MARK AND PERIOD OF KANGXI

Estimate
1,600,000 - 2,000,000 HKD
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Description

the slightly rounded conical sides supported on a wide flat base and a short straight foot, evenly applied on the exterior with a bright rose-pink enamel, the interior and the base reserved in white, the base inscribed with a six-character reign mark within a double ring in underglaze blue

Provenance

Collection of Mossette Levaur Keyzer-André.
S. Marchant & Son, London.

Exhibited

Imperial Porcelain of Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong, S. Marchant & Son, London, 1996, cat. no. 1.

Literature

Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, London, 1994-2010, vol. 4, no. 1825.

Condition

There is a 8 mm restored hairline at the rim, otherwise the bowl is in overall good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

Vessels of Kangxi mark and period with rose-pink or ruby-red enamel are extremely rare since this colour was developed as a pigment for porcelain painting at Jingdezhen only in the last years of the Kangxi reign, in the 1720s. The accomplished handling of the new enamel colour at this early date is remarkable and sometimes caused the authenticity of cups such as this to be doubted in the past. The rapid progress made by the Jingdezhen potters in mastering this enamel, which is derived from colloidal gold, is now beyond doubt, and the shape of this cup, with its wide base, is also characteristic of the last years of the Kangxi (AD 1662-1722) and first years of the Yongzheng reign (AD 1723-35).


A pair of cups of this form, colour, reign mark and size is in the British Museum, see S.J. Vainker, Chinese Pottery and Porcelain, London, 1991, pl. 158; and a single one in the Baur Collection, Geneva, is illustrated in John Ayers, The Baur Collection Geneva: Chinese Ceramics, Geneva, 1968-74, vol. III, pl. A 482. Similar cups, generally with a somewhat darker ruby-pink enamel are also known painted with fruit inside, both with Kangxi and Yongzheng reign marks; see a Kangxi pair from the Yale Kneeland collection and a Yongzheng pair, both sold in our New York rooms, 1st June 1994, lot 390, and 29th November 1976, lot 614; four such Kangxi cups are also in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago (inv. no. 41.648).