Page 35 - Christies King St. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS AND WORKS OF ART
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A RARE PAINTED ENAMEL ‘ARABIC SCRIPT’ CENSER
QIANLONG FOUR-CHARACTER MARK IN PUCE ENAMEL WITHIN A
DOUBLE SQUARE AND OF THE PERIOD (1736-1795)
清乾隆 銅胎畫琺瑯阿拉伯文雙耳爐
「乾隆年製」雙框四字楷書款
Each side of the censer is painted with a cartouche enclosing Arabic script
set against a vibrant blue ground, surrounded by multi-coloured foral sprays,
including lotus, peony and chrysanthemum. The interior is decorated with a
further foral bloom. The pair of curved handles are decorated in gilt.
7æ in. (19.7 cm.) wide across the handles
(mark)
£20,000-30,000 $31,000-46,000
€28,000-41,000
The two inscriptions on the censer, lā ‘ilāha ‘illā allāh, and muhammad rasūl
allāh, may be translated as ‘There is no god but God’ and ‘Muhammad is the
messenger of God’ respectively.
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