 POLYCHROME |
 MONOCHROME |
 BLUE and WHITE |
 EARLY CHINESE |
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 S. EAST ASIAN |
 EUROPEAN |
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ARITA c.1680 - 1720 Japanese PorcelainA Japanese Blue and White Porcelain Plate from the Arita Kilns in North-Western Kyūshū, Late 17th or Early 18th Century. The Thickly Potted Moulded Porcelain Plate has a Foliate Edge with a Brown Iron-Oxide Dressing Kuchibeni (Which means lipstick in Japanese). The Sides of the Plate are Well Painted with Trailing and Fruiting Vines. The Back with Karakusa Scrolls. The Base has a Running Fuku Mark Meaning Happiness. Stock n. 21152 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
WANLI 1573 - 1620. Kraak Ware.A Late Ming Kraakware Porcelain Plate, Wanli Period c.1600. Decorated in Blue and White with Four Deer in a Landscape with Two Birds and Pine, the Border with Typical Kraak Panels of Flowers. The Back with 'Chatter Marks' from the Finishing Tool Used to Form the back. 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. The first known time Kraak was first used as a term to describe a type of late Ming blue and white porcelain was in 1673. This was over 100 years after what we now know as Kraak porcelain was first produced, however there is some evidence that it was a term that had been in use for some time. Blue and white porcelain was exported to Europe in large quantities from the mid 16th century. It was highly prized and the Portuguese fort hard against the Dutch to keep control of this lucrative trade, but in 1602 the Dutch sold the cargo they captured from the Portuguese Carrack 'San Tiago' and two years later they sold the cargo of the 'Santa Catarina'. These ships caused a sensation, it was the first time such large amounts of Chinese blue and white porcelain had been available in Northern Europe, many of the pieces were 'gifts' rather than to be sold on the open market . 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. Kraak porcelain also includes a few rare pieces that have the addition of underglaze copper red and there are a very few know examples of polychrome kraakware. Kraak porcelain went out of fashion at the end of the Ming Dynasty but was later revived during the reign of Kangxi (1662-1722). Swatow porcelain (c.1580-1640) was made in the kraak style but this is thicker and much cruder, the bases often show grit adhering. For a similar Ming Dynasty Kraakware plate from the wreck of the San Diego dated 1600 see : Le San Diego, Un tresor sous la mer (Dominique Carre, Jean-Paul Desroches and Frank Goddio, Reunion des Musees Nationaux,1994. ISBN 2-7118-3135-3) page 344 cat. 116. Stock n. 21203 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
KANGXI 1662 - 1722. Kangxi Blue and White Porcelain.A Blue and White Kangxi Square Porcelain Vase c.1690 - 1700. The Flared Cylindrical Neck Tops a Rectangular Body Which Tapers Towards the Base. Decorated with Flowers Emblematic of the Four Seasons : Spring ; Peony from Jagged Rockwork, Summer ; Lotus Rising from a Pool, Autumn ; Chrysanthemum, Winter ; Prunus Blossom. Kangxi Vases of this form were complicated objects to pot, from the Kangxi vases of this shape I have seen the main problem was attaching the neck to the body of the vase. Looking inside the neck, the joint between the body and the neck is not well done and iron-oxide has migrated through the body. This production problem occurs on most vases of this type and I feel it is quite possibly this that limited the output of this form of Kangxi vase to the 1690', so therefore this form is quite rare. For a pair of Kangxi blue and white vases of this form and pattern see 20119 in our Archive. For another pair of similar Kangxi Blue and White Porcelain Vases decorated with flowers representing the seasons at Burghley House see the untitled undated Catalogue to the Porcelain at Burghley c.1980's. Item 205 Page 80. For a Kangxi Vase of this shape See : Kangxi Porcelain Wares from the Shanghai Museum Collection (Shanghai Museum, The Woods Publishing Company,1998) pages 42 and 43. Also See : Seventeenth Century Chinese Porcelain From The Butler Family Collection (Sir Michael Butler, Margaret Medley, Stephen Little, Art Services International,1990) page 176, item 120 and another Vase from the Group, item 121. A Further Kangxi Square Vase can be seen in : Chinese Porcelain of the the Seventeenth Century, Landscapes, scholar's Motifs and Narratives ( Julia B. Curtis, China Institute Gallery,1995) page 126, item 52. Provenance : An English Private Collection. Stock n. 20291 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
KANGXI 1662 - 1722 or YONGZHENG 1723 - 1735. Chinese Export PorcelainA Chinese Export Porcelain Teabowl and Saucer c.1700-1735. Decorated in Celadon with Blue and White. The Blue and White Decoration With Fish and a Crab Among Aquatic Plants. The Rather Translucent Celadon Green is Incised in the Body of the Porcelain Prior to Glazing with Branches of Flowering Plants. Provenance : Prof. Dr L. B. Holthuis of the Netherlands. Prof. Holthuis was a specialist of Crustacea at the National Museum of Natural History Naturalis in the Leiden, The Netherlands. The specices Macromia holthuisi is named after him. The Chinese word for fish 'yu' is pronounced in the same way as the word for abundance. So fish have come to represent prosperity and the carp is often represented as sign of success because of its perseverance, swimming up river. Pairs of fish swimming together, representing marital bliss, were common from the Southern Song (1128-1279) but it was in the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368) that fish swimming with aquatic plants became a common subject, the patterns were based on popular designs found in Southern China. Some of the earliest blue and white porcelain (c.1320-1350) depicts fish swimming with plants, frequently lotus as this represented purity. These Yuan designs were shown in the center of bowls and dishes surrounded by concentric geometric borders.It was not until the 16th century that freer, more open designs of fish swimming among sea weed and crabs were popular. Stock n. 20071 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
EASTERN HAN 25 - 220. Han Lead-Glazed PotteryA Han Pottery Model of a Pig in a Pen, Eastern Han Period 25-220. The Iridescent Green Lead-Glazed Red Pottery Model Shows Pig Standing in a Square Pen Which has Slots Cut into the Walls. Animal pens such as this were an important element in rural China at this time, other Mingqi pottery models of this type show farm buildings, mills, ovens and watch towers as well as the animals and the farmers themselves. Mingqi pottery objects were designed specifically for use in tombs. Most Han Mingqi pottery consists of copies of bronze or lacquer vessels or models of architecture forms, figures as well as animals. Food was an important element of Han burials, as with ancient Egypt foodstuffs were believed to provide sustenance for the next life. Richer tombs were generously supplied with raw agricultural products. Provenance : Collection of Baroness Dunn. Lydia Selina Dunn, Baroness Dunn, DBE, JP was the Senior Unofficial Member of the Legislative Council and Executive Council in Hong Kong in 1985-1988 and 1988-1995, after Rogerio Hyndman Lobo and Chung Sze Yuen respectively. She has been deputy chairman of HSBC in 1992-2008. As one of the most senior politicians in Hong Kong, Baroness Dunn had considerable influence in the Government of Hong Kong before her retirement in 1992, after Chris Patten was made Governor. Stock n. 21417 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
EASTERN HAN 25 - 220. Han Lead-Glazed PotteryA Han Pottery Model of a Sheep or Goats in a Pen, Eastern Han Period 25-220. The Green Lead-Glazed Red Pottery Model Shows a Family of Three Goats Seated in a Circular Pen Which has Slot Cut into the Wall. Animal pens such as this were an important element in rural China at this time, other Mingqi pottery models of this type show farm buildings, mills, ovens and watch towers as well as the animals and the farmers themselves. Mingqi pottery objects were designed specifically for use in tombs. Most Han Mingqi pottery consists of copies of bronze or lacquer vessels or models of architecture forms, figures as well as animals. Food was an important element of Han burials, as with ancient Egypt foodstuffs were believed to provide sustenance for the next life. Richer tombs were generously supplied with raw agricultural products. Provenance : Collection of Baroness Dunn. Lydia Selina Dunn, Baroness Dunn, DBE, JP was the Senior Unofficial Member of the Legislative Council and Executive Council in Hong Kong in 1985-1988 and 1988-1995, after Rogerio Hyndman Lobo and Chung Sze Yuen respectively. She has been deputy chairman of HSBC in 1992-2008. As one of the most senior politicians in Hong Kong, Baroness Dunn had considerable influence in the Government of Hong Kong before her retirement in 1992, after Chris Patten was made Governor. Stock n. 21415 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
QIANLONG 1736 - 1795 Chinese Export Porcelain A Chinese Export Porcelain Famille Rose Helmet Shaped Armorial Jug, Qianlong c.1770-1780. The Arms are Probably Continental. Stock n. 21425 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. The Side with a Circle Painted to Show the Cover Matches the Base. 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. Stock n. 13937 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
NORTHERN CHINA or The EASTERN EURASIAN STEPPES c.7th - 1nd Century B.C. Bronze Plaque.An Early Bronze Plaque of a Tiger's Head, Northern China or Eastern Eurasian Steppes c.7th to 1st Century B.C. 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. Stock n. 21128 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 323 item F6. Stock n. 21133 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
German 16th Century. German StonewareA 16th Century German Stoneware Jug. Stock n. 20883 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
MEISSEN c.1740 - 1750. German Hard-Paste PorcelainAn 18th Century Meissen Porcelain Trembleuse Cup and Saucer c.1740-1750. Decorated with Natürliche Blumen Against a Turquoise Ground. The Base with Crossed Sword Marks in Underglaze Blue for the Meissen Porcelain Factory. Stock n. 21594 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
MEISSEN c.1740. German Hard-paste PorcelainAn 18th Century Meissen Porcelain Yellow Ground Coffee Cup and 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 Saucer with an Incised '2' to the Rim, the Cup with an Impressed '4' and a Purple Painter's Mark 'L' or '7'. 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. MEISSEN PORCELAIN : Meissen porcelain was the first hard-paste porcelain, or true porcelain to be developed in Europe. Development of this new hard-paste porcelain by Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus started in 1707. When Tschirnhaus suddenly died, the recipe apparently was handed over to Böttger, who within one week announced to the Elector that he could make porcelain. Böttger refined the formula and with some Dutch co-workers, experienced in firing and painting tiles, the stage was set for the manufacturing of porcelain. In 1709, the Elector established the first Meissen porcelain factory, placed Böttger's laboratory at Albrechtsburg castle in Meissen and production started officially in 1710. In 1720 Johann Gregorius Höroldt became the director and introduced brilliant colours which made Meissen porcelain famous. The next sculptor, Johann Jakob Kirchner, was the first to make large-scale statues and figurines, especially of Baroque saints. His assistant was Johann Joachim Kaendler; in 1733 Kirchner resigned, and Kaendler took over as chief "modelmaster". He became the most famous of the Meissen sculptors. Under his direction Meissen produced the series of small figurines, often depicting scenes of gallantry, which brought out the best of the new material. His menagerie of large-scale animals, left in the white, are some of the high points of European porcelain manufacture. His work resulted in the production of exquisite figurines in the rococo style that influenced porcelain making in all of Europe. Supported by assistants like Johann Friedrich Eberlein and Peter Reinecke, he worked until his death in 1775. In 1756, during the Seven Years' War, Prussian troops occupied Meissen, giving Frederick II of Prussia the opportunity to relocate some of the artisans to establish the Königliche Porzellan Manufaktur Berlin. With the changing tastes of the neoclassical period and the rise of Sèvres porcelain in the 1760s, Meissen had to readjust its production, and in the reorganization from 1763, C.W.E. Dietrich of the Dresden Academy became artistic director and Michel-Victor Acier from France became the modelmaster. The practice of impressing numerals that correspond to moulds in the inventory books began in 1763. Sèvres styles and ventures into Neoclassicism, such as matte bisque wares that had the effect of white marble, marked the factory's output under Count Camillo Marcolini, from 1774. Provenance: From the estate of Niel Rimington (1928-2009) of Fonthill Old Abbey Estate, Wiltshire. Stock n. 21510 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
KANGXI 1662 - 1722. Chinese Export Porcelain.A Kangxi Porcelain Plate Decorated with Blue and White with Copper Red Decorated. The Base with a Six Character Apocryphal Chenghua (Ming Dynasty 1465-1487) Mark. This Plate was Made Using a Paper Stencil to Cover the Center, Powdered Cobalt was then Blown Through a Bamboo Tube onto the Surface of the Piece. The Paper was then Removed to Leave the Star Shaped Panel in White, this was then Painted with a Copper Oxide. Copper Red is a Very Difficult Colour to Control in the Kiln, it can be Very Feint, Turn Green or be Burnt. Stock n. 16399 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
QIANLONG 1736 - 1795. Chinese Export Porcelain. A Rare Chinese Export Porcelain Tea or Coffee Pot Decorated in Famille Rose Enamels. Qianlong Period c.1750 to 1760. This highly unusual Chinese Export Porcelain pot has a simulated bamboo spout and handle with the moulded porcelain body in imitation of wicker work. Both sides of the piece have a leaf shaped panel painted in Famille Rose Enamels with two ladies playing instruments while a further woman sits at a table, the scene is enlivened with two young boys and a dog. The gilded porcelain finial is created to give the impression of a section of bamboo with leaves. Stock n. 19895 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
17th CENTURY. Blanc de Chine Porcelain.A 17th Century Blanc de Chine Porcelain Beaker from Dehua in Fujian Province. The Exterior with a Two Line Poem Incised in Cursive Script. Cursive script originated in China during the Han dynasty through Jin Dynasty period, in two phases. First, an early form of cursive developed as a cursory way to write the popular and not yet mature clerical script. Faster ways to write characters developed through four mechanisms: omitting part of a graph, merging strokes together, replacing portions with abbreviated forms (such as one stroke to replace four dots), or modifying stroke styles. This evolution can best be seen on extant bamboo and wooden slats from the period, on which the use of early cursive and immature clerical forms is intermingled. This early form of cursive script, based on clerical script, is now called zhāngcǎo, and variously also termed ancient cursive, draft cursive or clerical cursive in English, to differentiate it from modern cursive (jīncǎo). Modern cursive evolved from this older cursive in the Wei Kingdom to Jin dynasty with influence from the semi-cursive and standard styles. Provenance : Peter Wain. A Private English Collection. Stock n. 19175 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
KANGXI 1662 - 1722.. Chinese Export Porcelain.A Kangxi Famille Verte Export Porcelain Vase. The Square Shape of Double Gourd Form, Decorated in Famille Verte Enamels with Round Panels of Flowers, above that Buddhist Objects Tied with Bows and above that Panels of 'Fu Dogs' (Buddhist lions) in Landscapes Alternating with Coastal Landscapes. Above that, Archaic Characters in Green and Gold with Half Flower Heads Under the Rim. Stock n. 18892 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
MING DYNASTY 1368 - 1644. Early Chinese Bronze.A Small Ming Dynasty Bronze Vase. Decorated in the archaic style, the body with two small loop handles. Stock n. 19340 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
FRENCH c.1760 -1785. French Hard-Paste Porcelain.An 18th French Porcelain Toilet Pot and Cover. Decorated in Cobalt Blue of a Slightly Sooty Tone with Large Sprigs of Flowers. The Base Marked .R.f.d. While the shape and design of this 18th Century Porcelain cosmetics box and cover relate to St.Cloud from the first half of the 18th Century this piece is rather later, and was possibly produced in Paris. Stock n. 20123 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
CHONGZHEN. 1628 - 1644 or SHUNZHI 1644-1661. Blanc de Chine Porcelain.An Unusual Transitional Blanc de Chine Porcelain Sleeve Vase c.1640 to 1650. This Very Thickly Potted 17th Century Vase is of a Form Rarely Encountered in Blanc de Chine Porcelain, However, the Form is Common Among Blue and White Transitional Porcelain of the Period c.1635 to 1645. Provenance : Kerteux Anyiques, Juncal 1120, Buenos Aires, Argentina (before 1960). A Private Collection. Stock n. 20352 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
QIANLONG 1736 - 1795. Chinese Export Porcelain.A Rare Chinese Export Porcelain Blue and White 'Tea Production' Sauce-Boat, Early Qianlong Period c.1740. This Piece is from the Well Known but Rare Service Depicting the Cultivation and Marketing of Tea. The Baroque Shell Border is Shown in the Well, the Main Scene Appears to Depict a Foreman Overseeing Workers Packing Boxes of Tea, with a Separate Figure Observing the Scene from a Window. The Base is Numbered '4.' in Blue and White. The Decoration on this Piece is Quite Blurred. The main design as well as the Baroque border pattern (In the well of this piece) were specially commissioned after a set of Chinese paintings depicting tea cultivation, each of the designs were numbered. Howard (See first reference below) speculates "The border was probably first used (in famille rose) on an armorial service for the Snoek family of Amsterdam. It is possible that there is some link between the two services, for a set a set of twenty four of these plates is known in Holland". For a plate of this pattern See : The Choice of the Private Trader, The Private Market in Chinese Export Porcelain illustrated from the Hodroff Collection (David S.Howard, Zwemmer,1994. ISBN 0 302 00642 7) Page 84 Item 69. Also See : China for the West, Chinese Porcelain & other Decorative Arts for Export illustrated from the Mottahedeh Collection ( David S. Howard and John Ayers, Sotheby's,1978), Pages 214 and 215. Stock n. 204891 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. 19277 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
MEISSEN c.1740 - 1750. German Hard Paste Porcelain.A Large 18th Century Meissen Porcelain Dish in the Form of Two Overlapping Leaves. Painted with Deutsche Blumen. The Base with a Crossed Swords Mark in Under-Glaze Blue for the Meissen Factory, the Footrim with a Workman's Mark 'S.x' in Puce. The present example is decorated with Deutsche Blumen (German flowers). This description is used to designate a particular type of floral painted decoration based on engravings, this style pre-dates the Naturliche Blumen (natural flowers) style of the 1750's. It is freer and less linear than Holzschnittblumen, 'woodcut flowers', which have a very two dimensional appearance. This style, despite its name, was also based on copper-plate engravings and is the most botanically correct of the Meissen flower painting styles and dates to around 1740. The shape, the first naturalistic form used by Meissen was first seen in the 1730's and bares a strong resemblance to Japanese porcelain forms. Stock n. 20813 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
NEOLITHIC, XINDIAN STAGE c.1500 - 1000 BC. Neolithic PotteryA Xindian Pottery Amphora, Late Neolithic Xindian Culture, Gansu c.1500 - 500 B.C. Decorated with in Black with Abstract Designs and Sun Type Motifs. The Lower Portion of the Jar with Rough Tooled Markings, Giving a Combed Like Appearance. The Chinese late Neolithic Period is one in which bronze was in use in some areas, but the development of this new technology spread unevenly among the different Neolithic cultures. Many areas were unaware of the new ability to produce bronze. For a similar Xindian Neolithic jar see : Pre-Tang Ceramics of China, Chinese Pottery from 4000 B.C. to 600 A.D. (William Watson, Faber and Faber,1991. ISBN 0-571-15433-6) page 97 plate 62. Stock n. 20946 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
ARITA c.1700 - 1740. Japanese PorcelainA Group of Four 18th Century Blue and White Japanese Porcelain Serving Dishes. The Design is Based on Japanese Textiles is Stencilled. Stock n. 20978 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
ARITA c.1720 - 1740. Japanese Porcelain.An 18th Century Japanese Porcelain Dish Decorated with Carp. Moulded with a Shaped Rim, Covered by a Pale Greyish-Tinged Glaze, the Interior Painted in Iron-Red, Enamels and Gilt with Three Carp Swimming Among Crested Waves and Aquatic Plants. The Back Undecorated. This polychrome enamelled porcelain serving dish is thought to have been manufactured in Arita kilns in the early 18th century for the domestic market. The pressed ring mark with kiln-grit adhering to the front interior of the dish was caused by firing in piles. Raw porcelain vessels were piled up in the kiln to fire as many pieces as possible. Stock n. 21155 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
ARITA c.1750 - 1780. Japanese Porcelain.An 18th Century Japanese Porcelain Dish. The Border of Blue Ground with Gilded HoHo Bird. The Central Scene with the Edge of a Building to the Right and the Three Friends of Winter (Sui han san you)to the Right. The Three Friends of Winter : These Three Plants, Pine, Bamboo and Prunus, Signify Perseverance, Neither the Pine nor the Bamboo Shed their Leaves in Winter and the Plum Flowers at the very end of the Winter, Heralding the Arrival of Spring. Stock n. 20849 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
MEISSEN. c.1740 - 1750. German Hard-Paste Porcelain.An 18th Century Meissen Porcelain Coffee Cup and Saucer. The Purple Ground Porcelain is Decorated with Cartouches Containing Deutsche Blumen (German Flowers). The Handel is of 'Wish Bone' Form. Both Pieces Marked in Underglaze Cobalt Blue with Crossed Swords for the Meissen Factory. Impressed Marks, Saucer '63' Cup '9' or '6'. Provenance : From a Private Collection of 18th Century European Porcelain. Stock n. 21213 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
SEVRES c.1794 - 1795.A Fine 18th Century Sevres Porcelain Seau a Bouteille (Bottle Cooler) from the First Republic Period July 1793 - 1804. The Upper Register Decorated with a Meandering Informal Thin Acanthus Scroll in Blue Enamel with Informal Garden Flowers, Fruit, Birds and a Classical Style Urn. The Lower Section Painted with a Pale Blue Pointille Ground. The Handles with a Gilded Shell to the Middle. The Base with a Large Mark in Blue Enamel : a Script 'Sevres' Below an Intertwined Script 'RF' for Republic Francaise, Below that the Painters Mark 'F C' Who is an Unidentified Painter of Flowers who Worked at Sevres in c. 1793-1794. Provenance : An Old Auction Label, Probably Christie's with the Date l2/2/76 Stock n. 21349 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
TANG DYNASTY 618 - 907. Tang Mingqi PotteryA Rare Tang Pottery Mingqi Model of Conjoined Fu Xi and Nu Wa. This Tang Pottery Model Consists of a Crudely Made Hollow Central Section with Roughly Scratched Hatched Markings and an Uneven Line of Holes Running Down the Back. Either Side is a Moulded Head, Each is Different to the other and Both have Different Style Hats. The Firing has Caused One Half to be Red While the Other is Black. In Chinese mythology Nu Wa is a Chinese mythological character best known for creating and reproducing people after a great calamity. Some scholars suggest that the female Nu Wa was the first creative Chinese deity, appropriate for ancient Chinese matriarchal society, in which childbirth was seen to be a miraculous occurrence, not requiring the participation of the male. The earliest myths represent Nu Wa as a female in a procreative role; in later stories Nu Wa has a husband/brother named Fu Xi, who assumes primary importance. In ancient art, Nu Wa is often depicted with a snake body and a human head. According to myth, Nu Wa shaped the first human beings out of yellow clay, then grew tired, dipped a rope into the mud and swung it around. The blobs of mud that fell from the rope became common people, while the hand-crafted ones became the nobility. Another myth recounts how Nu Wa saved mankind from terrible flooding and destruction. By the Han Dynasty (206 – 220 C.E.), Nu Wa was described in literature with her husband Fu Xi as the first of the Three August Ones and Five Emperors, and they were often called the "parents of humankind." In the earliest Chinese dictionary, Shuowen Jiezi, by Xu Shen , Nu Wa is said to have been both the sister and the wife of Fu Xi. However, paintings depicting them joined as half people, half snake or dragon, date as far back as the Warring States period. A stone tablet from the Han dynasty depicts Fu Xi with Nu Wa, who was both his wife and his sister. Stock n. 21423 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
ARITA KILNS 17th or 18th Century. Japanese PorcelainA 17th or 18th Century Japanese Blue and White Porcelain Kiln-Waster Bowl, Arita Kilns. The Miss-Shapen Bowl is Decorated with Flowers and Birds. The Interior Contains Fragments of Porcelain from a Different Object Glazed into the Well of the Bowl. Stock n. 21420 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |
JAPANESE c.1800 - 1830. Japanese Pottery.A Kyoyaki (Kyoto) Crackle Glazed Japanese Pottery Dish with Enamel Decoration of Pines and Bamboo. Stock n. 17192 R and G McPherson dealers in antique Chinese porcelain |