A CHINESE EXPORT INITIALED PART DINNER SERVICE, QING DYNASTY, JIAQING PERIOD, CIRCA 1805 |

possibly for the American market, each piece painted in the center in sepia with an oval vignette depicting a country house and initialed in gilding J.V.C, all underneath a neoclassical border, comprising: a large tureen and cover, two rectangular vegetable dishes and one cover, a shaped two-handled vegetable dish, liner and cover, a large oval vegetable dish and cover, a medium oval vegetable dish and cover, a small oval vegetable dish and cover, five vegetable dish bases of varying sizes, two oval platters, a vegetable tureen liner, eight plates and a small plate. 31 pieces.

Northeast Auctions, Portsmouth, New Hampshire, August 18, 2001, lot 713

The oval vignettes on the pieces from the present lot are identical to a service made for the Stagg family of Staten Island and initialed J.S. Two leaf shaped dishes from that service are illustrated in David Sanctuary Howard, New York and the China Trade, New York, 1984, cat. no. c67. John and Thomas Stagg, the presumed owner of the service, were builders in New York City. 

An oval soup tureen and cover, as well as two oval vegetable dishes and covers from the same service as the present lot were sold in these rooms January 18, 1997, lot 1278 and 1279. The tureen was accompanied by a note that indicated that the tureen belonged to Frances Folsom Cleveland, the wife of President Grover Cleveland, and was used by her at "Oak View", the Cleveland's estate in Washington. It has been speculated that the mansion depicted in the oval vignette perhaps is a generic view of an English country house, rather than a specific building.