Lot 139
  • 139

A RARE BLUE AND WHITE, IRON-RED AND POLYCHROME ENAMELLED 'IMMORTALS' BOWL QING DYNASTY, KANGXI PERIOD

Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
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Description

  • porcelain
  • 19cm.
with rounded sides rising to an everted rim, delicately painted in finely pencilled tones of iron-red with famille-verte highlights with a procession of fourteen Immortals and attendants, each of the Immortals with their associated attributes, all framed by underglaze-blue double lines, the interior with a single fruiting peach sprig in green and iron-red enamel within a double medallion, wood stand

Provenance

Antiquaire Tournet, Paris, circa 1946.
Collection of Comte de Marotte, Paris.
Thence by descent.

Exhibited

Iron in the Fire. The Chinese Potters’ Exploration of Iron Oxide Glazes, Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, 1988, cat. no. 79.

Condition

There is an 8.5cm crack running verticaly to one side of the rim. There is some minor scratches to the glaze to the interior.
"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."

Catalogue Note

A closely relate bowl from the Qing Court collection and still in Beijing, is illustrated in Porcelains in Polychrome and Contrasting Colours. The complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 118.

Bowls painted with this subject matter are more commonly found decorated in iron-red and black enamels without the additional underglaze blue borders and occasionally without the famille-verte details as seen on the present lot. For examples of this type, see a Kangxi mark and period bowl from the Oppenheim collection illustrated by R.L. Hobson et al., Chinese Ceramics in Private Collections, London, 1931, fig. 160; and a pair from the Treitel collection included in the exhibition Ausstellung Chinesischer Kunst, Berlin, 1929, cat. no. 911, and now in the Gemeente Museum, The Hague. See also an unmarked example in iron-red and black enamels, included in the exhibition The Barbara Hutton Collection of Chinese Porcelain, Honolulu Academy of Arts, 1956, cat. no. IX.