Page 15 - 2020 October 8 HK Fine Classical Paintings

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PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN 清乾隆 青花游龍獻壽如意耳葫蘆瓶
A FINE BLUE AND WHITE ‘DRAGON’ 《大清乾隆年製》款
DOUBLE-GOURD VASE
SEAL MARK AND PERIOD OF QIANLONG
each side of the lower bulb decorated with a central shou
roundel between a pair of confronted dragons detailed with
long sinuous bodies with elaborate streaming scrolls, below a
bat medallion on the upper bulb, the base inscribed with a six-
character seal mark, wood stand
17.6 cm, 6⅞ in.

HK$ 1,000,000-1,500,000
US$ 130,000-194,000
The elegant double-gourd form and dynamic design of the
present vase are filled with auspicious symbolism. On each
side, two sinuous dragons frame a stylised shou (longevity)
character, below a bat facing upwards and ruyi-shaped
handles. Together they symbolise blessings, longevity and
fulfilment of all wishes (fushou ruyi).
Vases of this type are held in important museums and private
collections worldwide; a vase in the National Palace Museum,
Taipei, was included in Illustrated Catalogue of Ch’ing Dynasty
Porcelain in the National Palace Museum: Ch’ien-lung and
Other Wares, vol. II, Tokyo, 1981, pl. 3; another in the Nanjing
Museum, is illustrated in The Official Kiln Porcelain of the
Chinese Qing Dynasty, Shanghai, 2003, pl. 277; a pair in the
Huaihaitang collection, was included in the exhibition Ethereal
Elegance. Porcelain Vases of the Imperial Qing, Art Museum,
Institute of Chinese Studies, The Chinese University of Hong
Kong, Hong Kong, 2007, cat. no. 107; a single vase and a
further pair were sold in our London rooms, 7th November
2012, lot 500, and 6th November 2019, lot 157.
Vases of this form are also known decorated in other palettes;
a blue-glazed vase with a combination of auspicious design
elements in gilt, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, was
included in the Museum’s Special Exhibition of K’ang-hsi, Yung-
cheng and Ch’ien-lung Porcelain Ware from the Ch’ing Dynasty
in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1986, cat. no. 78; and a
pair of yellow-ground vases with a shou character surrounded
by bats, from the collection of Mrs Christian R. Holmes, was
sold in these rooms, 9th October 2012, lot 3024.

Mark

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