Page 85 - Mounted Oriental Porcelain, The Getty Museum

14- PAIR OF VASES

THE PORCELAIN: Chinese (Kangxi), 1662-1722
THE GILT-BRONZE MOUNTS: French (Paris), circa 1745-49
l
HEIGHT: i ft., /2 in. (31.7 cm); WIDTH: i ft., 2 in. (35.5 cm); DIAMETER: loVi in. (26.7 cm)
79.DI.I2I.I-.2,

DESCRIPTION COMMENTARY
Each vase is enameled with green, blue, and auber- Each vase is the lower half of a tall rouleau vase,
gine and gilt with sinuous-horned dragonettes penciled the original height of which would have been about eigh-
in grisaille amongst flowering, scrolling tree peonies on teen inches. A complete unmounted vase with an iron red
an iron-red ground. Circular reserves enclose peonies ground and similar decoration is in the Salting Bequest
1
above a base band of alternate panels of squared spiral at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. A pair of
and basket-weave patterns. These are on a green ground vases simply mounted at the rim and foot was sold at
separated by four oval reserves that enclose camelias. auction in New York in 1993. 2
A rich flaring mount of gilt bronze chased with What would appear to be the upper half of one of
twisted fluting encircles the mouth of the vase (fig. 14A). the Getty Museum's vases is at Schloss Faisanerie, Fulda. 3
At each side, an elaborately scrolled mount with an in- It is inverted and bears mounts of the same model at the
verted leaf at the center depends from the lip (fig. 146). rim and handles; it was certainly made by the same
The lip is linked to the foot at each side by a scrolled bronzier. It could be assumed that it was once part of
handle from which bullrushes spring, clasping the lower a pair.
half of the vase (fig. 140). The foot is held in an elabo-
rately scrolled and molded mount that rests on five tall PUBLICATIONS
C-scroll feet linked across each side by floral sprays Wilson 1980, p. 9, no. 6; Watson 1981, p. 31;
(fig. 140). Bremer-David et al. 1993, p. 154, no. 259; Sargentson
1996, p. 69, pi. 37.
MARKS
The mounts of each vase are struck with four EXHIBITIONS
crowned C's: on the foot, each handle, and the rim. The Chinese Porcelains in European Mounts, The
bases of the vases are painted with double circles in China Institute in America, New York, 1980, no. 2,0.
underglaze blue.

FIG. 14A

72,