A FINE PAIR OF INCISED WHITE ROOSTERS QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD

each modelled standing on brown-glazed rockwork bases,  their heads unglazed, painted in red, finely incised, on wooden stands

Sotheby's London, 5th March 1974, lot 121.
Collection of Lady Baillie, Lowndes House, London (thence by descent).

Both roosters are in very good condition with the exception of some minor characteristic hairline firing cracks to the inside of the base and a 1 x 0.6cm. area of misfired glaze to the rear lower neck of one.
"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."

See a single cockerel of closely related form illustrated in David Howard and John Ayers, China for the West, vol. II, London, 1978, p. 584, pl. 606, where the authors note that 'the very popular figures of cocks show an interest in bird or animal models, apart from their traditional symbolic roles, that was relatively new in the eighteenth century; and they may have been among the first produced in purely naturalistic rather than 'famille verte' or 'famille rose' colouring'.

See a pair of cockerel figures, from the Collection of the late H.R.H. the Duke of Kent and later in the collection of H.M. Knight, sold in these rooms, 12th May 1970, lot 122; and a single figure from the Mottahedeh collection, sold in our New York rooms, 19th October 2000, lot 378.