A fine ruby-ground sgraffiato ‘hundred antiques’ bowl, Seal mark and period of Daoguang | 清道光 胭脂紅地軋道粉彩開光博古圖盌 《大清道光年製》款

Collection of Liang Dunyan (1857–1924), and thence by descent.

來源

梁敦彦 (1857-1924) 收藏，此後家族傳承

Famille-rose 'medallion' bowls featuring brightly colored grounds patterned with sgraffiato designs developed in Qianlong period (1735-1796), and continued to be produced at in the imperial kilns of subsequent emperors, particularly during the Daoguang reign (1820-1850). Imperial Daoguang bowls of this type featuring the 'hundred antiques' motif have appeared in prominent collections and in numerous auctions. Examples include a pair from the Edward T. Chow Collection sold twice in our Hong Kong rooms, first on 19th May 1981, lot 595, and later on 28th April 1998, lot 841; and a single bowl from the Paul and Helen Bernat Collection, which also sold twice in our Hong Kong rooms: 15th November 1988, lot 46, and 8th April 2007, lot 804. The same year, three such bowls sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 27th November 2007, lots 1770, 1771, and 1772. More recently, bowls of this type have sold in these rooms, 13th September 2017, lot 241, and 12th September 2018, lots 162 and 163; and a pair sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 27th November 2018, lot 2970.

Liang Dunyan (1857–1924) was a native of Guangdong province, who was partially educated in the United States through his participation in the Chinese Educational Mission. The Mission, which operated from 1872 to 1881, sent 120 Chinese youths to live with American families and study in New England secondary schools, and subsequently study in American universities, with the aim that graduates would return to China and contribute to China's modernization and ‘Self-Strengthening’ efforts. As part of that pioneering program, Liang entered Hartford Public High School in Connecticut in 1874 and went on to graduate from Yale University (class of 1882). Following his return to China, Liang served in numerous important roles as a politician, diplomat, and advocate for education starting in the late Qing dynasty. Among his distinguished positions were his tenure as President of Beiyang University in Tianjin (1904-07), China’s Minister to the U.S.(stationed in Washington, D.C.) (1907), and the President of the Board of Foreign Affairs (1908-11). His prime accomplishment was negotiating with the U.S. Minister to China, William Rockhill, in 1908-09, to finalize the U.S.-Sino scheme to utilize the excess Boxer Indemnity funds in the creation of a Boxer Indemnity Scholarship. Since 1909, the Scholarship has sponsored thousands of Chinese students to study in U.S. preparatory schools and universities. During the Republic period, Liang served as the Minister of Communications (1914-16) and as the Minister of Foreign Affairs (1917).