Page 263 - Chinese Porcelain Vol II, Galland

FAMILLE VERTE.
369

Kang-he Birthday Plates.
We now come to a most from the Bennett
interesting piece
collection, viz. one of the celebrated plates said to have
been made to commemorate the sixtieth of
birthday Kang-he.
Decorated in the most perfect taste, the colouring is in sub-
dued shades, and do not seem to show
they any trace of rose.
The borders in a red bistre seem alike in all, but the
bright
designs in the centre vary. In the present instance we have
the while on others we find the the
pea, persimmon, peach
tree and bird, lotus and ducks, orange or citron and bird,
and tree. from their these
peacock flowering Apart beauty,
plates are of special interest, and perhaps by rights, should
come earlier in this series.
No. 635. "A
white-ground plate, 10 inches in diameter,
surrounded by a coral-red fancy border, in which are four
medallions. In these four characters
originally existed, signify-
that the was made for to the
ing plate presentation Emperor
Kang-he on his sixtieth birthday. For some reason the
characters in the medallions have been rubbed out. The
decoration of the plate consists of a large grasshopper, in sepia
on the stems and of
of various shades, resting green foliage
which show the with the seeds in them.
peas, open pods
"
Marked on the base with the six characters of the Kang-he
era (1661-1722) in double blue rings, to which period it un-
These as
doubtedly belongs. Kang-he birthday plates, they
are called, are
ordinarily extremely uncommon, and are in-
with and care, and the writer
variably painted great delicacy
has only to his knowledge seen four of them, three of which
are in this collection, but since the above he learns
writing
that there are four more in the Grandidier collection in Paris."
Of these the characters are intact, and mean " with-
longevity
out limit."
Famille Verte with Blue Enamel.
a of bowls made of
pair
Nos. 636, 637, 638, 639, represent
fine white decorated in enamels of subdued
rery porcelain,
)lour but inches
great transparency. Diameter, 8g ; height,
inches. No mark. Except for the famille verte band at
le rim inside, which has all the look of this one would
period,