A FINE ENAMELLED SIMULATED GOURD BRUSH WASHER QING DYNASTY, QIANLONG PERIOD

formed in the shape of a double-gourd, lying on its side and cut open, decorated with an attached vine and leaves and with three tiny gourds underneath serving as feet, the outside painted in brownish red with uneven darker patches after the skin of a gourd, the leaves in turquoise green with black veins, the vines and miniature gourds picked out in gilding, the inside turquoise, wood stand

Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, The British Museum, London, 1994.
Evolution to Perfection. Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection/Evolution vers la perfection. Céramiques de Chine de la Collection Meiyintang, Sporting d'Hiver, Monte Carlo, 1996, cat. no. 200.

Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, London, 1994-2010, vol. 2, no. 950.

There is a minute area of retouching to one of the vines on the exterior measuring approximately 3 mm. The interior appears to have a star crack. The turquoise glaze on the interior is matte from having water inside the vessel and appears to have been touched up to cover the cracks. There is a tiny firing crack to one of the double-gourd feet at the join to base of the vessel.
"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."

The imperial kilns undertook the simulating in porcelain of all kinds of materials for the Qianlong Emperor, but gourds are surprisingly rare. A small gourd-shaped bottle with similarly simulated skin and an applied vine with golden leaves is in the Musée Guimet, Paris, illustrated in Michel Beurdeley and Guy Raindre, Qing Porcelain: Famille Verte, Famille Rose, London, 1987, pl. 170 right.