 POLYCHROME |
 MONOCHROME |
 BLUE and WHITE |
 EARLY CHINESE |
|||||
 S. EAST ASIAN |
 EUROPEAN |
 SHIPWRECK |
 BRONZE |
| Page N. 4 of 8 |
MEISSEN. c.1745 - 1755. German Hard-Paste Porcelain.An 18th Century Meissen Porcelain Coffee Cup and Saucer with Hausmalerei Decoration Over a Moulded Blanc de Chine Style Prunus Design. Painted Elegant, Well Dressed People in a Rustic Landscape, with a Complex Interlaced Gilt Border. The Decoration is Either by F. J. Ferner or Perhaps by F.F. Mayer's Workshop at Pressnitz. The Base with the Meissen Crossed Sword Mark in Under-Glaze Blue. The Term Hausmalerei Refers to Porcelain Decorated Outside the Factory. The decorators who painted blank Meissen often used porcelain from an earlier period. The shape of this jug dates from the late 1730's or early 1740's to about 1745 or 1750. Stock n. 20509 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
JIAQING 1796 - 1820. Chinese Export Porcelain.A Chinese Export Porcelain Armorial Plate. The Blue and White Porcelain Plate has a Chinese Landscape with Buildings Set Near Water, the Fitzhugh Border has a Gap at the Top of the Armorial Devise. The Service, According to Howard, was Probably Made for the Family of Sir George Prescott of Theobalds Park. However it is Possible it was Made for Descendants of John Prescott of Watertown Massachusetts. For an armorial plate from this service see : Chinese Armorial Porcelain Volume II (David Sanctuary Howard, Heirloom & Howard Ltd, 2003. ISBN 0-9544-389-0-6) page 545. U9. Provenance : Heirloom & Howard, London. The Tom Lurie Collection of Chinese Export Porcelain. Purchased August 1980. Stock n. 21010 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
SONG DYNASTY 960 - 1279. Song StonewareAn Unusual Song Dynasty Stoneware Feeder c.12th Century. The Circular Bowl has Been Thrown on a Wheel, the Flat Rounded Handel is Moulded with a Flower-Head and other Decoration. The Rim of the Bowl has a Notch Cut Opposite the Handel. The Well of the Bowl is Glazed in a Thick Dark Brown Glaze. Stock n. 21194 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
KANGXI 1662 - 1722. Blanc de Chine PorcelainA Blanc de Chine Porcelain Water-Dropper Modelled as a seated Boy holding a Ruyi Sceptre. Kangxi Period, Dehua Kilns Fujian Province. For a very similar figure see : Blanc de Chine, Porcelain From Dehua. A Catalogue of the Hickley Collection (Rose Kerr & John Ayres, Art Media Resources Ltd 2002) plate 45. Provenance : R & G McPherson Antiques (Stock number 15627) The Margaret Goldney Collection of Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art. Stock n. 20519 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
NEOLITHIC c.2000 B.C. Neolithic Pottery. An Unusual Chinese Neolithic Grey Pottery Vessel and Cover c.2000. B.C.. Stock n. 20943 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
QIANLONG 1736 - 1795. Chinese Export Porcelain.A Chinese Export Porcelain Famille Rose Armorial Spoon Tray c.1750. This was almost certainly made for William Hamilton Nisbet, Whose Only Child, Mary Married in 1799 Thomas , Seventh Earl of Elgin, Who was Appointed that Year Ambassador to Constantinople and Brought to England the Elgin Marbles. See : Chinese Armorial Porcelain Volume II (David Sanctuary Howard, Heirloom & Howard Ltd, 2003. ISBN 0-9544-389-0-6) page 955. P5. Also see : Chinese Armorial Porcelain (David Sanctuary Howard,Faber and Faber,1974) Page 288. P5. Provenance : Sotheby's New York, 19th November 1980, Lot 620. The Tom Lurie Collection of Chinese Export Porcelain. Stock n. 21011 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
WESTERN JIN 265 - 316 or EASTERN JIN 317 - 420. Yue Celadon Ware.A Yue Celadon Mingqi Cup and Stand. This Thickly Potted Stoneware Model Comes from the Yue Kilns in Zhejiang Province. This Yue Celadon Ware cup and stand is unusual in that it has been made as a model of a bowl and saucer rather than being one. The bowl was attached to its saucer during its manufacture, therefore it is a representation of a bowl and saucer, rather than being anything that could have been functional. This piece is an example of Mingqi, objects made specifically for burial, to be taken with you to the afterlife. The 'Terracotta Army' is the most famous example of this type of burial object. Mingqi ceramics were not the only goods to appear in early Chinese tombs, objects that did function were also buried, some of these had clearly been worn or even damaged, presumably these were things belonging to the deceased that might have been used on a daily basis. For a related celadon 'Ear Cup' on a stand see : Catalogue of Chinese Greenware in the Ashmolean Museum Oxford (Mary Tregear, Clarendon Press, 1976. ISBN 0-19-813167-4) page 29 plate 45. Stock n. 21191 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
KAKIEMON c.1670 - 1700. Japanese Porcelain.A 17th Century Japanese Kakiemon Porcelain Flower Shaped Bowl. The Shallow Nigoshide Porcelain (milky white) Form with Notches to the Fuchibeni Rim (a rim dressed with brown iron oxide). The Cavetto Painted in Typical Kakiemon Enamels with a Large Branch of Chrysanthemum Among Grasses, Asymmetrically Balanced by a Small Flower Head with Two Leaves on the other Side. The Reverse with Three Small Sprigs. For a very similar 17th Century Japanese Kakiemon Porcelain bowl see : Shibata Collection Part 5, The Creation and Development of the Enpo Style (The Kyushu Ceramic Museum, Saga Prefecture, Akihiko Shibata and Yuko Shibata and others.1997) page 84 plate 97. Stock n. 21078 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
TANG 618 - 907. Tang PotteryA Pair of Tang Pottery Musicians, Late 7th to Mid 8th Century. The Elegant Musicians Depicted Seated with Lose Robes and the Hair Divided into Two High Chignons at the Side of the head. One is Playing Bo, Small Cymbals, While the Other Holds up Her Hands to Play a Dizi, a Bamboo Flute (Now Lacking). The Bo (bronze cymbals) were frequently used in Sui and Tang dynasties (6th to 9th century). The performer strikes the cymbals together. The most common type now is the jingbo (the prefix jing referring to Beijing, the prefix used to define the instruments in the Beijing opera). This type is clear and forceful in tone quality. It is also used in other regional opera genres and ensembles, and is one of the four major instruments (drum, large and small gongs and cymbals) in the jubilant luogu (gong and drum) music. In local operas, the luogu ensemble often accompanies acrobatic fighting. References : For a very similar Tang cymbal player see : Fine Chinese Ceramics, Bronzes and Works of Art, Sotheby's London, 9th December 1986, lot 66. The catalogue states "A lady playing the cymbals and in the same pose is included in the group of musicians and dancers with the same coiffure and robes unearthed in 1976 at Xucun..". This was the tomb of Li Shou in Sanyuan, Shaanxi province. Provenance : Purchased in June 1952 from Spink and Son, London. A Private European Collection of Early Chinese Ceramics. Stock n. 21384 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
HOI AN HOARD c.1450 - 1500. Vietnamese Pottery.A 15th Century Vietnamese Blue and White Pottery Miniature Box and Cover from the Hoi An Hoard. Provenance : Treasures From The Hoi An Hoard, Important Vietnamese Ceramics from a Late 15th/Early 16th Century Cargo. Butterfield's, October 11th to 13th 2000. Label inside the cover, item 97405. Stock n. 13946 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
Probably 1920's to 1940's. A 20th Century CopyIn the Style of Early Bronze from Northern China or Eastern Eurasian Steppes. This is a Copy or Forgery and Dates to the 20th Century. Provenance : The Arthur M. Sackler Collection of Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987) was an American psychiatrist, entrepreneur and philanthropist. In 1960 Sackler started publication of Medical Tribune, a weekly medical newspaper. He established the Laboratories for Therapeutic Research in 1938. He earned his fortune by gaining the rights to import and sell Valium in the United States. He established a wide range of medical institutions bearing his name. Arthur M. Sackler was also a scholar of the arts. He endowed galleries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Princeton University, the Arthur M. Sackler Museum at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the Arthur M. Sackler Museum of Art and Archaeology at Peking University in Beijing, the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery of the Smithsonian Institution, in Washington, D.C., and the Jillian & Arthur M. Sackler Wing at the Royal Academy, London. His brother, Mortimer Sackler, endowed the Sackler Library at the University of Oxford, England. The Sackler Gallery opened in 1987 after Arthur M. Sackler donated some 1,000 Asian art objects to the Smithsonian, as well as $4 million toward the gallery`s construction. The highlights from his gift include early Chinese bronzes and jades, Chinese paintings and lacquer ware, ancient Near Eastern ceramics and metal ware, and sculpture from South and Southeast Asia. Published : Ancient Bronzes of the Eastern Eurasian Steppes from the Arthur Sackler Collection (Emma C. Bunker with Trudy S. Kawami, Katheryn M. Linduff, Wu En, Published by The Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, 1997. ISBN 0-8109-6348-5) page 340 item F36. Stock n. 21135 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
WORCESTER c.1760 - 1770. English Soft-Paste PorcelainA Large Worcester Porcelain Double Leaf-Shaped Dish Decorated with Scattered Flowers c.1760 - 1770. Founded in Worcester, England in 1751, the factory was established on the banks of the River Severn by a group of local businessmen, with the guidance of Dr John Wall, a physician. Dr. Wall along with another of the group, apothecary William Davis, developed their method for producing porcelain. Dr. Wall secured the sum of £4500 from the partners to establish the factory in Worcester and those original partnership deeds are still housed in the Museum of Worcester Porcelain. Stock n. 20885 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
CHONGZHEN 1628 - 1644 Ming Dehua Porcelain.A Pair of Late Ming Porcelain Alter Tapper-Stick Holders, Probably from the Dehua Kilns in Fujian Province, Late Ming Dynasty, Chongzhen Period 1628-1644. The Square Section Forms are Glazed in an Iron Rich Brown Glaze. Provenance : The Carl Kemp Collection of Early Chinese Ceramics. Johan Carl Kempe (8 December 1884 – 8 July 1967) was one of the greatest collectors of Early Chinese Ceramics, like many he started off with Ming and Qing polychrome Porcelain before becoming interested in the more restrained palette of Early Chinese Stoneware and Porcelain. Carl Kempe was ideally placed as a collector of early Chinese ceramics, Sweden was at the forefront of research and collecting during most of the 20th century, Swedish academics and archaeologists had direct links with China, helping out with the excavation of Neolithic sites as well as kilns from the Song dynasty. King Gustav VI of Sweden (1883-1973) headed a very active circle of native scholarly collectors including Kempe. From 1929 academics contributed information to collectors and others interested in Chinese ceramics through the publication of 'Bulletin of the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities'. Jan Wirgin author of 'Sung Ceramic Designs' and Bo Gyllensvard, who in 1964 wrote 'Catalogue of Chinese Ceramics In the Carl Kempe Collection' were just two of the many people contributing to the knowledge of Chinese ceramics at the time. The Ulricehamn East Asian Museum, Sweden. Stock n. 202631 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
HATCHER CARGO c.1643. Transitional Porcelain.Hatcher Cargo, Transitional Porcelain c.1643. A Large Hatcher Cargo Kraak Porcelain Blue and White Dish. The Hatcher Cargo was the first shipwreck cargo to come on to the market. It was sold in three auctions in Christie's Amsterdam in 1984 and 1985. It is a very important cargo of shipwreck ceramics, despite the lack of historical evidence recorded by the salvage team. A porcelain cover dated to the Spring of 1643 helps confirm the date of the wreck. The Ming dynasty ended in 1644 and the period of chaos between between the end of the Ming and the beginning of the Qing dynasty is referred to as the Transitional period. The Hatcher Cargo is a vital dating tool for late Ming and early Qing porcelain. All Kraak porcelain was made at the main ceramic centre in China, Jingdezhen. It does vary in style and quality to quite a large extent, and some scholars include pieces as kraakware that others do not, so a definitive description is, I feel, rather difficult. The main group of kraak porcelain is less controversial. Normally thinly potted, often moulded, it's designs are divided into decorative panels, with reserves that might include flowers and animals, taotie masks and stylised tulips. The bases often show 'Chatter Marks'. These are ridges, that radiate from the centre of the base to the foot rim, they are caused by the potters finishing tool catching on the leather hard clay prior to glazing. When one looks at the construction, painting techniques and glazing of kraak porcelain it appears similar in many ways to some of the late Ming porcelain made for the Japanese market. I think it is quite possible that they were both made within the same kilns at Jingdezhen. For similar Hatcher Cargo Kraak porcelain dishes see : Fine And Important Late Ming And Transitional Porcelain, recently recovered from an Asian vessel in the South China Sea. Property of Captain Michael Hatcher. Christie's Amsterdam 14th March 1984. Stock n. 19348 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
GERMAN c.1760 - 1780. Hard Paste Porcelain.An 18th Century German Porcelain Coffee Cup and Saucer c.1760-1780. Decorated in Puce Camaieu with Oval Vignettes in the Style of Watteau (1684-1721) Set Against a Fabric Inspired Design of Gilt Bands with Blue Outlines Against a Green Ground. Stock n. 20787 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
ARITA c.1750 - 1800. Japanese PorcelainAn 18th Century Japanese Blue and White Dish in the Late Ming Ko-Sometsuke. Decorated with Plants Growing Among Rocks, the Border of Buddhist 'Precious Objects'. The Base with an Apocryphal Ming, Xuande, Six Character Mark. Apocryphal marks are frequently encountered on Chinese porcelain particularly on Kangxi Blue and White Porcelain, but they can also be found on Japanese Porcelain, the mark of the Ming Emperor Chenghua who reigned from 1465 to 1487 being by far the most common, other Ming marks include Jiajing (1522-1566) and less frequently Wanli (1573-1620). These marks were not added to the piece to deceive, but more as a sign of reverence to earlier potters of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Occasionally they are used on pieces copying Ming Porcelain, these objects were probably made for collectors who could not afford the Ming original. Tianqi is an early period for such an apocryphal mark. Ko-Sometsuke is a term used to describe Chinese blue and white porcelain made for Japan. This late Ming porcelain was made from the Wanli period (1573-1620) and ended in the Chongzhen period (1628-1644), the main period of production being the 1620'2 and 1630's. The porcelain objects produced were made especially for the Japanese market, both the shapes and the designs were tailored to Japanese taste, the production process too allowed for Japanese aesthetics to be included in the finished object. Its seams firing faults were added, repaired tears in the leather-hard body were too frequent to not, in some cases, be deliberate. These imperfections as well as the fritting Mushikui (insect-nibbled) rims and kiln grit on the footrims all added to the Japanese aesthetic. The shapes created were often expressly made for the Japanese tea ceremony meal, the Kaiseki, small dishes for serving food at the tea ceremony are the most commonly encountered form. Designs, presumably taken from Japanese drawings sent to China, are very varied, often using large amount of the white porcelain contrasting well with the asymmetry of the design. Stock n. 21259 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
CHONGZHEN PERIOD 1628-1644. Transitional Porcelain.A Late Ming Dynasty Kraak Porcelain Klapmutsen Bowl. Decorated in Blue and White with 'Buddhist Treasures', the Rim with Four Taotie Masks. Klapmutsen bowls with high or low sides were a favourite of the Dutch during the first half of the seventeenth century. A shallow Kraak porcelain Klapmutsen such as the present example was ideal for stews and soups, a western pewter spoon could rest on the edge without falling in. V.O.C. records show that Klapmutsen were ordered in four different sizes. The masks on the rim are referred to as Taotie however Rinaldi points out that these are ..."most unlike the traditional Chinese monster mask. Indeed it has a definite resemblance to a gala, the mythological Indian glutton who was punished by having to eat his own body until only the mouth and upper part of the head and two tiny hands remained". Were the Chinese trying to tell the Dutch something one wonders ! Kraak Porcelain is a Type of Chinese Export Porcelain Produced from the Wanli period (1573-1620) until the end of the Ming Dynasty in the 1640's. Kraakware or Kraak porcelain was the first Chinese Export Ware to arrive in Europe in large quantities. Its name does not, as had been previously thought derived from the name of Portuguese trading ships, it is possible its name derived from Irish ships called Curachs. These trading ships worked between Ireland and England, they were know to the Dutch traders who used a similar word, craquen, to describe Portuguese trading ships. However in the 16th and early 17th centuries the word Kraak was not used in the V.O.C. record or inventories to describe porcelain. It appears the earliest recorded use of the word Kraak relating to porcelain is in the 1670's. For very similar Kraak ware bowls see : Fine And Important Late Ming And Transitional Porcelain, Recently Recovered from an Asian Vessel in the South China Sea. Property of Captain Michael Hatcher. Christie's Amsterdam 14th March 1984. The catalogue shows two lots of these small kraak porcelain bowls. Lot 23 and lot 24 both lots were of three bowls. For further Kraakware bowls of this type see : Kraak Porcelain, A Moment in the History of Trade (Maura Rinaldi, Bamboo Publishing,1989) Pages 118 - 137. Classification of Klapmutsen. Stock n. 21403 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
MING 1368 - 1644. Early Chinese Pottery A Pair of Ming Pottery Models of Chests. From a Kiln in North China, Jiajing to Wanli, c.1550 - 1600. This pair of Ming Pottery chests were funerary models, the Chinese call them Mingqi, they were made expressly for burial. There were several great period of production, but it was the Ming dynasty that saw the largest amount of pottery models of furniture being made. They were produced from low-fired pottery and had brightly coloured lead-glazes similar to those found on Ming Roof-Tiles. They were made in moulds and quickly assembled, the present example uses the same mould for both the front of the chest as for the back, but so as to not show the doors on the front and on the back, the back panel has been reversed. So, when you look from underneath you can see the moulded door panel on the interior of the piece of furniture. The tops, sides and back are left unglazed, these areas were sometimes 'cold-painted'. A table with offerings of this type of Ming Pottery, purchased from Robert McPherson can be seen in the Victoria and Albert Museum. For a Ming Pottery Mingqi chair See: Ming Ceramics in The British Museum (Jessica Harrison-Hall,The British Museum Press,2001) Page 552 Item 20:8. Stock n. 198844 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
MING DYNASTY 1368 - 1644. Ming BronzeA Ming Bronze Figure of a Servant or Acolyte c.1550-1640. The Base has Two Rectangular Tangs Which Fit into the Later Wooden Stand, Originally this Figure Would have been Part of a Large Ming Bronze Group. Stock n. 21227 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
JIAJING To Early WANLI c.1550 - 1580. Ming PorcelainA Ming Porcelain Bowl, Jiajing to Early Wanli c.1550 - 1580. The Exterior Plain Except For Two Concentric Lines. The Interior Rim is of a Diaper Pattern and the Well with a Stylized Flowering Branch. Pieces like the present Blue and White Ming Porcelain example have traditionally been referred to as 'Provincial Blue and White Porcelain' because the potting and painted appear as being some what rustic. Sometimes 'provincial' pieces have a great strength and freedom that can be lacking in more refined objects. Recent research in China has shown that there was little Blue and White Porcelain produced outside the main kiln complex of Jingdezhen in Jiangxi Province. The exception might be Dehua in Fujian province but the Blue and White Porcelain production from those kilns is distinct from the kilns at Jingdezhen. Stock n. 21342 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
YUAN 1279 - 1368. Early Blue and White Porcelain.A Yuan Blue and White Porcelain Jarlet, Jingdezhen Kilns c.1320 - 1368. This Early Chinese Blue and White Porcelain Jarlet has Two Loop Handles, the Sides are Painted with Flowers. The origins of Chinese blue and white porcelain start, not in China, but in the Middle East, decoration using blue and white was originally developed in Mesopotamia. The source of the first cobalt blue pigment used in China was also not Chinese and the dynastic power in charge of China at the time, the Mongol's of the Yuan dynasty, was a foreign power. Yet blue and white porcelain will for ever be linked to China because of the ceramics produced at Jingdezhen from the beginning of the 14th centuey. Blue cobalt pigment was sometime used in China during the Tang dynasty (618-906) nearly always as an additional colour in Sancai pottery but the first use on porcelain was at the start of the 14th century. It was used in a very different way, unlike the Tang where splashes of cobalt were used to add colour, the Yuan potters used it to create carefully painted designs. This would have been very difficult to achieve using the the high-flux lead-glazes of Tang pottery. The body developed for blue and white porcelain at Jingdezhen was almost from the very beginning of exceptionally high quality, as was the glaze, which was midway between a Qingbai and Shufu glaze. This true lime-alkaline glaze was less fluid than Qingbai glazes so the blue was less likely to run and less opaque than Shufu glazes so the painting appeared more brilliant. Most of the imported cobalt blue pigment used for Chinese blue and white porcelain of the 14th and 15th centuries came from Kashan in Persia. For further reading about early Chinese blue and white porcelain see : Chinese Glazes, Their Origins, Chemistry and Recreation (Nigel Wood, A & C Black, London, 1999). Provenance : Found in East Java. Stock n. 20501 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
JIN DYNASTY 1115 - 1234. Cizhou TypeA Miniature Cizhou Ware Ewer with a Twisted Handel, Jin Dynasty 1115-1234. For details of a very similar Cizhou ewer from the Brodie Lodge Collection sold by R & G McPherson Antiques click on the image or enter 17340 into the search on the front page. For a similar Cizhou stoneware ewer with iron-oxide decoration See 'Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection' by Regina Krahl. Volume One, Page 270, item 497. Provenance : The Carl Kemp Collection of Early Chinese Ceramics. Johan Carl Kempe (8 December 1884 – 8 July 1967) was one of the greatest collectors of Early Chinese Ceramics, like many he started off with Ming and Qing polychrome Porcelain before becoming interested in the more restrained palette of Early Chinese Stoneware and Porcelain. Stock n. 20364 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
QIANLONG 1735 - 1796. London Decorated A Chinese Export Porcelain Coffee Cup, Gilded in London c.1755-1765 with Swags of Flowers. Possibly James Giles or His Workshop. Stock n. 20835 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
HATCHER CARGO c.1643. Transitional Porcelain.Hatcher Cargo, Transitional Porcelain c.1643. A Hatcher Cargo Kraak Porcelain Blue and White Dish. Label to Base : The Hatcher Collection Christie's Amsterdam 14-03-1984. The Hatcher Cargo was the first shipwreck cargo to come on to the market. It was sold in three auctions in Christie's Amsterdam in 1984 and 1985. It is a very important cargo of shipwreck ceramics, despite the lack of historical evidence recorded by the salvage team. A porcelain cover dated to the Spring of 1643 helps confirm the date of the wreck. The Ming dynasty ended in 1644 and the period of chaos between between the end of the Ming and the beginning of the Qing dynasty is referred to as the Transitional period. The Hatcher Cargo is a vital dating tool for late Ming and early Qing porcelain. Kraak Porcelain is a Type of Chinese Export Porcelain Produced from the Wanli period (1573-1620) until the end of the Ming Dynasty in the 1640's. Kraak ware or Kraak porcelain was the first Chinese Export Ware to arrive in Europe in large quantities. Its name does not, as had been previously thought derived from the name of Portuguese trading ships, it is possible its name derived from Irish ships called Curachs. These trading ships worked between Ireland and England, they were know to the Dutch traders who used a similar word, craquen, to describe Portuguese trading ships. However in the 16th and early 17th centuries the word Kraak was not used in the V.O.C. record or inventories to describe porcelain. It appears the earliest recorded use of the word Kraak relating to porcelain is in the 1670's. For similar Hatcher Cargo Kraak porcelain dishes see : Fine And Important Late Ming And Transitional Porcelain, recently recovered from an Asian vessel in the South China Sea. Property of Captain Michael Hatcher. Christie's Amsterdam 14th March 1984. Stock n. 19279 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
ARITA c.1680 - 1720. Japanese PorcelainA Japanese Blue and White Porcelain Dish in the Kraak Style. Produced at the Arita Kiln in North-Western Kyūshū c.1680-1720. Decorated with a Deer in a Landscape Next to a Pine Tree Growing Out of the Rocks. The Borders Include Taotie Masks and Flowers. Kraak Porcelain is a type of Chinese Export Porcelain produced from the Ming Dynasty reign of emperor Wanli (1573-1620) until the end of the Ming Dynasty in the 1640's. Kraak ware was exported to Japan, Europe and the Near East, hardly any pieces were retained in China. It was copied at Japanese Porcelain factories from as early as c.1660. For a Japanese Kakiemon enamel dish of this shape and design, previously from R & G McPherson Antique, now in a private Australian collection see : The Japanese Aesthetic, Three Centuries of Japanese Porcelain Design and Western Interpretations (The Ceramic and Glass Circle of Australia, 2006)pages 18 and 19 item 33. Stock n. 21147 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
COZZI c.1770. Italian Porcelain.An 18th Century Italian Porcelain Dish from the Cozzi Factory in Venice. Painting in Underglaze blue, Iron Red and Gilding in Imitation of Chinese and Japanese Export Imari Style Porcelain. The Base with a Large red Anchor for the Cozzi Porcelain Factory. Geminiano Cozzi had a porcelain factory in Venice from about 1764 to 1812. Stock n. 20490 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
DUTCH c.1750 - 1780. Dutch DelftAn 18th Century Dutch Delft Dish Copying a 17th Century Japanese Porcelain Original. The Moulded European Silver Shape Dish is Decorated in Blue and White and then Tin Glazed. The Scene is of Chinese Figures and a Fisherman in a Boat. It seems that this Blue and White Japanese Porcelain design was popular in Holland in the 18th Century, it is know in several Dutch collections and was copied by the Dutch in pottery, that is Delft ware, as well as in Dutch Porcelain. For an 18th Century Dutch Delft jar and cover of this pattern as well as a 17th Century Japanese Porcelain dish with the original version of the design see : Fine and Curious, Japanese Export Porcelain in Dutch Collections (Christiaan J.A.Jorg,Hotei Publishing,2003. ISBN 90-74822-16-9) page 143, plate 157 and fig. 157b. Jorg states that this pattern can also be found in Loosdrecht and Amstel Porcelain. Stock n. 21288 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
HOI AN HOARD c.1450 - 1500. Vietnamese Pottery.A 15th Century Vietnamese Blue and White Pottery Peach Shaped Water Pot from the Hoi An Hoard. Provenance : Treasures From The Hoi An Hoard, Important Vietnamese Ceramics from a Late 15th/Early 16th Century Cargo. Butterfield's, October 11th to 13th 2000. lot 6315/15. Dr Henry David Ginsburg (1940 - 2007). Dr Henry Ginsburg was a keen collector, musician and curator at both the British library as well as the British Museum. Stock n. 20319 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
MING DYNASTY or Early QING DYNASTY 16th to 18th Century. Cizhou Type Pottery.A Large Ming or Early Qing Pottery Vase of Cizhou Type. This Bronze Form Vase has a Clear but Crackled Glaze Over a Cream Coloured Slip. Provenance : A Private European Collection of Early Chinese Ceramics. Stock n. 21386 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
MEISSEN c.1740. German Hard-paste PorcelainAn 18th Century Meissen Porcelain Yellow Ground Saucer. Painted in the Style of Johann Gottfried Klinger (1711-1781) with Shaded Holzschnittblumen (Woodcut Flowers) and Insects. The Base with Crossed Sword Marks in Underglaze Blue for the Meissen Porcelain Factory. The carefully painted flowers appear almost as if they were pressed flowers, which is not entirely surprising considering they were taken from contemporary copper-plate engravings. The term used to describe this type of flower painting is Holzschnittblumen, 'Woodcut Flowers'. This style is the most botanically correct of the Meissen flower painting styles and dates to c.1740. From about 1745 Deutsche Blumen 'German flowers' became popular, it was a less linear style but still careful in its execution. Both of these ways of painting flowers contrast with the more loosely painted Naturliche Blumen, 'Natural Flowers' favoured slightly later in about 1750. Provenance: From the estate of Niel Rimington (1928-2009) of Fonthill Old Abbey Estate, Wiltshire. Stock n. 21511 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
WANLI 1605 Dated Epitaph TabletA Large Dated Wanli Sandstone Epitaph Tablet, It is Dated the 32nd Year of Wanli (1573-1620) Which is Equivalent to 1605. Extensively Inscribed on the Front with the Name of Mrs Tchen Who was 69, it Mentions Many Things Especially Her Taoist Belief and the Importance of Feng Shui. The Reverse has a Further Inscription as Well as the Eight Trigrams The Ba Gua, Eight Trigrams literally eight symbols are eight diagrams used in Taoist cosmology to represent the fundamental principles of reality, seen as a range of eight interrelated concepts. Each consists of three lines, each either 'broken' or 'unbroken', representing a yin line or a yang line, respectively. Due to their tripartite structure, they are often referred to as Trigrams in English. The trigrams are related to taiji philosophy and the Wu Xing, the 'Five Elements'. The relationships between the trigrams are represented in two arrangements, the Primordial, Earlier Heaven or Fuxi bagua, and the Manifested, Later Heaven, or King Wen bagua. The trigrams have correspondences in astronomy, astrology, geography, anatomy, the family, and elsewhere. The Eight Trigrams : ( ☰ Qián Heaven ☱ Duì Lake/Marsh ☲ Lí Fire ☳ Zhèn Thunder ☴ Xùn Wind ☵ Kǎn Water ☶ Gèn Mountain ☷ Kūn Earth. Stock n. 21338 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
EARLY MING, HONGWU - XUANDE 1368 - 1435. Longquan Celadon WareAn Early Ming Celadon Dish, Longquan Kilns, Zhejiang Province, Late 14th or Early 15th Century. Heavily Potted with Shallow, Rounded Sides, the Center of the Dish Carved with a Trellis Pattern. The Border of Vigorously Carved Scrolling Lotus. Glazed with a High Gloss Rich Olive-Green Celadon Glaze Front and Back Except a Firing-Ring on the Base Which is Left Unglazed, this has Fired Orange Due to Iron-Oxide in the Body. Celadon Ware. Celadon is a term used to describe several types of Chinese stoneware and porcelain, as well a ceramics from other countries, notably from Korea and Japan. The term is a imprecise one, applying to various types of green glazed ceramics, but not all ceramics with green glazes, there are several wares that have a green glaze that are not refereed to as celadon. For example Green Jun and Ge Ware. For this reason there has been a move to try to clarify the situation by using the term 'Green Ware'. But for now Celadon is a more familiar and therefore useful term. The origins of the term Celadon are not clear, one theory is that the term first appeared in France in the 17th century and that it is named after the shepherd Celadon in Honoré d'Urfé's French pastoral romance, L'Astrée (1627), who wore pale green ribbons. (D'Urfe, in turn, borrowed his character from Ovid's Metamorphoses.) Another theory is that the term is a corruption of the name of Saladin, the Ayyubid Sultan, who in 1171 sent forty pieces of the ceramic to Nur ad-Din, Sultan of Syria. Yet a third theory is that the word derives from the Sanskrit sila and dhara, which mean "stone" and "green" respectively. Celadon ware originated in Zhejiang Province in the Eastern Han Dynasty, however green monochrome glazes can be found on stoneware much before that date. Zhejiang is were the famous Longquan Celadons were made but Celadon wares were also produced at Jiangsu, Hubei, Hunan and Jiangxi. The production of Celadon Ware required a reducing atmosphere of around 1300 degrees C., the colouring agent was a mixture of iron oxide and titanium. The glaze was applied very thickly, and was full of tiny bubbles which defuse the light giving the appearance of richness and softness. For similar Early Ming Celadon Dish dishes of this type see : Chinese Ceramics in the Topkapi Saray Museum Istanbul, A Complete Catalogue, Volume 1, Yuan and Ming Dynasty Celadon Wares (Regina Krahl, Published in association with the Directorate of the Topkapi Saray Museum by Sotheby's Publications 1986) page 329. For similar but larger Early Ming Celadon Dish see : Gods of the Buddhist Pantheon & Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Christie's Hong Kong, 3rd November 1998, lot 915. Provenance : S,Marchant & Son, label to base describing the piece as 16th century. A Private English Collection. Stock n. 21083 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |