A CHINESE EXPORT ALLEGORICAL TEAPOT AND A COVER circa 1740-45

emblematic of 'Air,' and painted on one side with a nymph chasing the rainbow above Juno in her peacock-drawn chariot amongst clouds, the reverse with a cupid playing a drum beneath an angel flying toward the bearded Aeolus with a billowing pink drapery, seated at the other end of the rainbow beside another cupid hiding in a box, the cover with a Chinese river scene.  The cover probably married.

The William Martin-Hurst Collection, no. 474
The collection of Mr. and Mrs. Rafi Y. Mottahedeh, New York, no. 123, sold, Sotheby's, New York, October 19, 2000, lot 238

Richmond, The Mottahedeh Collection, 1981-82
New York, China for the West, 1984

David Howard and John Ayers, China for the West, Vol. I, p. 332, no. 327

A 2mm chip on the upper edge of the spout; the cover married and has a 2mm and a 3mm chip on the edge and three 4mm frits and a few other tiny nicks, gilding worn from the knop.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The scenes on this teapot and the following eight lots each depict one of 'The Four Elements' from popular prints after the series painted by Francesco Albani (1578-1669) initially for the Borghese Palace in Rome.  Its popularity, however, encouraged Albani to paint three more series of which the best known was completed in 1635 for Cardinal Maurice of Savoy (later the King of Sardinia), and is now in the Galleria Sabauda, Turin.  Hervouët and Bruneau, who illustrate an example of each 'Element,' pp. 318 and 319, nos. 13.92-13.95, quote the descriptions that Albani, in his correspondence with the Cardinal, wrote for each painting in the series, explaining his choices of the figures depicted and their symbolic relevance, and also remarking that he made the designs circular so that the 'Elements' could be arranged concentrically in the order of the universe.

The Albani paintings were copied by a number of engravers, including Nicolas de Larmessin (1638-94), Jean-Louis Delignon (1755-1804), Antoine Herisset (1685-1769) and Christian Friedrich Duttenhoffer (1778-1846); and it was from these prints that the Chinese export plates and teawares were decorated, albeit in somewhat simplified versions, as shown by Le Corbeiller 1974, who illustrates on p. 65, fig. 27, an engraving by Herisset of 'L'eau' ('Water') and on p. 64, no. 27, a Chinese export plate depicting the same subject.  She also comments on p. 65 that "the popularity and widespread repetition of mythological subjects at different periods by engravings makes it difficult to pinpoint a market or date for China trade porcelain of this type," which continued to be produced over a period of time. She therefore bases her dating of this group on the border patterns, either gilt or blue enamel foliate scrolls, which for the most part were used on other porcelains circa 1730-1740.

All four scenes from the 'Four Elements' on a set of Chinese export plates, formerly in the W. Martin-Hurst Collection and now in the Winterthur Museum, is illustrated by Williamson, pl. XXXIX and Palmer, p. 71, color pl. 7. An assembled set of the 'Four Elements' plates in which 'Earth' had a blue enamel scrollwork border but the other three had gilt foliate-scroll borders, was sold at Christie's in New York on January 21, 1999, lot 71.  

Plates painted with 'Air' as a single tableau are illustrated by Hervouët and Bruneau, p. 318, no. 13.93; Krahl and Harrison-Hall, p. 136, no. 57; and Williamson, pl. XXXIX (bottom, right).  A fluted hexagonal teapot stand with this scene was sold at Christie's in London on November 16, 1999, lot 373, where the catalogue entry noted that it "is a fanciful illustration of Virgil's Aeneid, 1:50-86, in which Juno, who personifies Air persuades Aeolus to unloose the winds,...in the form of mischievous putti,...on the Etruscan seas in an attempt to destroy Aeneas and his fleet."

See also the note to lot 202.