A CLOISONNE FISHBOWL WITH FRENCH 'BARBEDIENNE' MOUNTS THE FISHBOWL LATE MING DYNASTY, THE MOUNTS 19TH CENTURY

of compressed globular form, the slightly tapered rounded sides rising to an incurved rim, decorated around the body in polychrome enamels against a turquoise ground with four barbed panels enclosing birds and flowers, respectively prunus, rose, lotus and peony evoking the four seasons, reserved on a dark blue diaper ground between 'classic scroll' at the rim and upright lappets around the foot, the interior with a variety of fish and crustaceans amidst scrolling leaves and florets, all reserved on a white enamelled ground picked out with undulating lines resembling water wrinkles, the slightly recessed base with six lotus blooms on a purplish-blue ground centred with a six-character Jingtai mark cast in relief on a gilt bronze plaque, further embellished in the 19th century with French bronze mounts, raised on a bamboo simulated pedestal pierced with shou symbols and set with a bronze rim encircled by a gilt neo-classic border, the pedestal and the rim joined by two ferocious writhing dragons flanking the bowl, the bronze rim signed F. Barbedienne in italic capital letters    

There are some losses and filled-in areas to the enamelling, with the largest refilled section measuring 9.5 x 12.5 cm to the interior. The gilding around the rim has been somewhat rubbed off. The later added French bronze mounts are 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."

Impressive vessels of this type, products of the Imperial Palace Workshops, were made for the furnishing of the many gardens and courtyards located with the grounds of the Forbidden City in Beijing. A wide range of colours that include the use of the six major tones - red, yellow, blue, green, white and black, were employed for the four scenes and the diaper ground. The composition of the painterly scenes is directly influenced by Ming style bird and flower compositions popular with the early Qing court. While the present fishbowl is a rare example of Imperial wares of this type, a closely related example, from the Qing court collection and still in Beijing, is illustrated in Zhongguo jin yin boli falangqi quanji, vol. 5, Shijiazhuang, 2002, pl. 188, attributed to the Kangxi period. The Palace Museum fishbowl is made in the same decorative technique and also bears a six-character Jingtai mark on the base, suggesting that the two vessels were produced as a set, possibly to be placed on either side of a garden entrance. Another fishbowl of this type with similar decoration within four barbed panels, but on a differently patterned ground and slightly smaller in its dimensions, in the collection of the Österreichisches Museum für Angewandte Kunst, Vienna, is published in Dr. Gunhild Gabbert Avatabile, Die Ware aus dem Teufelsland, Hannover, 1981, pl. 42.

See also a cloisonné enamel fishbowl decorated with a continuous aquatic scene, similarly attributed to the early Qing period, also in the Palace Museum, Beijing, included in Zhongguo jin yin boli falangqi quanji, op.cit., pl. 187; and a vessel of quatrefoil section, each decorated in the cloisonne enamel technique with scenes of birds and flowers of the four seasons within a formal lotus panel motif, placed on a stand also made by Ferdinand Barbedienne (1810-1892). Barbedienne, who had a great interest in Chinese and Japanese metalwork and enamelling, and had studied them carefully, is best known for his reproductions in cast bronze of sculptural masterpieces of antiquity and the Renaissance. He experimented with cloisonné and champlevé enamelling in the Chinese style as well. For further reading on Barbedienne see The Second Empire: Art in France under Napoleon III, Philadelphia, 1978, pp. 114-115.

An impressive pair of Imperial cloisonne enamel fishbowls, decorated with ducks, kingfishers, storks and other birds among lotus plants, in a continuous landscape, from the collection of Alfred Morrison, Lord Margadale of Islay at Fonthill House, Tisbury, Wiltshire, was sold at Christie's London, 18th October 1971, lot 100.