Page 46 - Nov. 2019 Christie's Hong Kong Important Chinese Ceramics

2915 Continued

The present lot was sold together with another Qianlong mille fleurs ទᐽ৅⯝औӬ։Գ㪏⟾ᆭⶃⱤ㢶⶿⼕≡ᝪӬऱᙻ ჺ ᝲ ᚚஙٳ
double-gourd vase bearing a sticker indicating it was from the Fonthill ᘹ⼖༛ᬘᐽ㐈ǯ㊃≡଍ᆨ⊶⊿卿Ԇ㬳Ꮀཌ卿ֿӳᝳᘞྒྷ཰⤔⽚ Ԡ
Heirlooms, inscribed no. 586/2, at Sotheby's London, 23 July 1968,
᧐⟟卿ᙻ ჺ⼖༛ᬘᐽ㐈ԋऱἃᐽ৅ ⽚卿ज㇦ݦ։மἃᘞྒྷ཰
together as lot 128. The companion piece, while not identical to form
⯠⻦ǯ㊃≡ᇌᙻ ჺ ᝲ ᚚᙻٳᘹצ೥ᇑᐽ㐈卿ᐽ৅ ⽚ǯ
a pair, is also of double gourd form and decorated with the mille fleurs
pattern, later sold at Christie’s London, 11 November 2003, lot 94.
⟾ᆭⶃⱤ㢶ᦔஎㅻ㫓卿ⰰᆭ㎒༛卿⊺Ⴧ㫬Ɽӳഌ㞔ᛞ㧿ࣿᇵሲᏝ⬒⥾⊺
Magnificent vases of this type decorated in the skillfully painted mille ߅⥝⩧ӶԷ⎏எᡪ卿ஙൈ᫉㵲ഌ⎏⶿⼕≡ӳᝤᛓ୷㫙卿ᘢཨ༿ഌ⎏Գ
fleurs or wanhuajin (myriad flower brocade) design are very rare. A 㪏ⶃⱤ㢶଍㬳჎☮ཐǯजᬘ㖅औӬ։Գ㪏ⶃⱤ㢶⶿⼕≡卿㯝㛑սӳ㛑
comparable vase is in the collection of the Walters Gallery of Art,
Baltimore, illustrated by Steven W. Bushell, Oriental Ceramic Art, ߎ⦷ഔ卿㧏ᝳ㠩ऑ卿⻦ᙻႣ‰⎏ᕳⵖ⁞ᙱ⻱ワࢷ⁒㱦卿㖊ᙻ 4UFWFO 8
Frederick Muller, London, 1981 edition, p. 214, figure 279. The Walters #VTIFMM ⶬǶ0SJFOUBM $FSBNJD "SUǷ卿ٳᘹ卿 ჺݻ‸卿㮰 ⽚卿
vase has the upper part of its neck missing and been bound with metal. எ ⽚ǯ
Certainly it would have been extremely time-consuming and require ݯձഌཨ༿⎏Գ㪏׾ຽࡺᑐ㚅༱⏥ࢷ⁒㱦⻦Ӭ։ⶃⱤ㢶Ɽ㈓卿⭬㛑ᝧ█
exceptional skill to create such a complex pattern on a large vessel.
Even with the resources available to the Qianlong emperor, it is not ⡚ჺ᪪卿፽ἃՆ؊ԠӬ卿㖊ᙻࠫⰮ׉ⶬǶ ԋஇ᫓ջ㪃≢㦶㐃Ƿ卿✄
surprising that very few mille fleurs pieces of size were made. A large ݺ卿झ࢈卿 ჺ卿㮰 厎ࣿӬⶃⱤ㢶ഌ⧉卿⻦Ⴃ㿰म⧻ࢷ⁒㱦卿㖊
gu shaped vase in the Liaoning Provincial Museum (illustrated by Liu .JDIFM #FVSEFMFZ ࣿ (VZ 3BJOESF ⶬǶ2JOH 1PSDFMBJO 'BNJMMF 7FSUF
Liang-yu in A Survey of Chinese Ceramics - 5 - Ch'ing Official and 'BNJMMF 3PTFǷ卿ٳᘹ卿 ჺ卿எ ⽚ǯ
Popular Wares, Aries Gemini Publishing Ltd., Taipei, 1991, p. 190)
indicates that an altar set must have been made with this decoration.
The Liaoning vase, like the current vases, bears a six-character seal
mark in iron red against a turquoise ground, but in the case of the
Liaoning vase this is written horizontally above the central bulb. A
further large vase, this time of simple guan form, decorated with mille
fleurs from the Grandidier Collection is in the Musée Guimet, Paris
(illustrated by Michel Beurdeley and Guy Raindre in Qing Porcelain
- Famille Verte, Famille Rose, Thames and Hudson, London, 1987, p.
118-9, nos. 164-5). Like the current vases, the Guimet vase has a six-
character iron red Qianlong seal mark on white against a turquoise
ground.

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