Page 349 - Christie's, NYC Important Chinese Works Of Art Sept. 22-23, 2022

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A VERY RARE SMALL GILT-DECORATED MOTTLED The combination of this type of decoration with the rectangular panels
TURQUOISE-GROUND VASE enameled in imitation of marble is very unusual. The Qianlong Emperor was
QIANLONG GILT SIX-CHARACTER SEAL MARK AND OF THE PERIOD particularly fascinated with the concept of imitating one material in another.
(1736-1795) During the Qianlong reign this fascination was at its height, and lacquer,
The faceted vase is relief-decorated with various gilt patterns and motifs, stone, wood and bronze were among the materials reproduced in porcelain.
including pairs of bats flanking beribboned wan emblems on the neck With the technical advances and virtuosity of porcelain production during
flanked by scroll handles, and decorated with quatrefoil panels of simulated the Qianlong period, potters from the official kilns were able to experiment
‘dreamstone’ marble on each side of the body, all reserved on a mottled with different ways and techniques to satisfy the emperor's penchant for the
turquoise and blue-glazed ground accented with black specks. curious and novel. This fascination with imitating other materials through
5Ω in. (14 cm.) high the use of glazes and enamels on porcelain can clearly be seen in a set of
seven thumb rings in the collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei,
each of which imitates a different material, including pudding stone, wood,
$60,000-80,000 bamboo, inlaid bronze, malachite, turquoise, as well as marble. See Emperor
Ch'ien-lung's Grand Cultural Enterprise, National Palace Museum, Taipei, p.
PROVENANCE:
Collection de M. le Comte de Semalle; Hôtel Drouot, 1-2 February 1922, lot 199, no. V-36.
324.
The exquisite diminutive vase belongs to a small group of Qianlong-marked 清乾隆 松石綠地描金開光仿石紋方瓶 描金六字篆書款
porcelains decorated with mottled enamels of different types such as 來源:
turquoise on the present piece, combined with café-au-lait-tone enamels and M. le Comte de Semalle珍藏; Hôtel Drouot, 1922年2月1-2日, 拍品編號324
gilt motifs often in relief. See, for example, the Qianlong-marked miniature
vase and cover with molded archaistic relief decoration set against a mottled
turquoise, blue and black enamel ground in imitation of an ancient bronze
patina, sold at Christie’s New York, 22 March 2013, lot 1530.

(mark)

The present vase as listed in Hôtel Drouot, 1-2 February 1922, lot 324.
本拍品出售於Hôtel Drouot, 1922年2月1-2日, 拍品編號324

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