Page 232 - Chinese Porcelain Vol II, Galland

KANG-HE.
360
this dish is entirely covered with a dark mazarine blue, except
where the green dragons and nebula 1 appear ; the only white
to be seen is the uncoloured edge of the dish.
Peach Bloom.
16 inches. No
No. 619 is a flat gourd-shaped piece. Height,
mark. The stand is concave and unglazed. Here we have what
is not uncommon peach bloom employed along with other
coloured glazes in the decoration of white porcelain. The oval-
shaped stand is decorated with prunus, white (relieved with red)
upon blue ; on the lower bulb two bats extend their blue wings
so as to meet at each side ; the middle bulb is in the form of a
pomegranate ; while the top one represents a peach. This
is one of a intended to hold flower
piece pair, perhaps originally
sprays, or as candlesticks, such as are used at weddings. Be this
as it from being made of rather
may, apart rough porcelain,
they cannot be said to be particularly artistic or decorative but
;
all the same, in many ways they are delightfully quaint, and,
in the of a collector, perfectly unique as of
eyes samples peach
bloom on account of the liberal manner in which the same is
"
splashed with so called verdigris."
"
Dr. Bushell describes peach bloom as a pale red becoming
pink in some parts, in others mottled with russet spots dis-
played upon a background of light green celadon tint," and
ascribes this shade, as also the well-known de to the
sang bceuf,
inventive genius of Ts'ang Ying-hsiian, who was a director of
the Government works at King- te- chin towards the end of the
Kang-he period. Mr. Hippisley, referring to a particular
instance which he as a
quotes Yung-ching specimen, seems to
"
consider the dull white pink shade upon an underground of
pale sea-green," merely to result from a trick of the brush.
He on to " in some
goes say, specimens the underground forces
"
itself into notice in the form of on the but in
splashes pink ;
the of
majority pieces known by this name, green does not
at all, and we
appear merely have the dull pink shade more or
less mottled with russet
spots.
In the case of No. 619 now under consideration, with the
exception of a little round the seeds of the pomegranate, the
green is confined to the lower bulb. On the body of the bat
and of the at the
upper part wings the red as seen edges