A 'Famille-Rose' 'chicken and rooster' dish. Qing dynasty, late 18th /early 19th Century

of shallow form supported on a low tapered foot, the exterior decorated with chickens and rooster in a grassy pasture with craggy rocks, peony, chrysanthemum and narcissus sprays, among bamboo, picked out in green, pink, blue, yellow, brown and black, the interior medallion painted with a similar palette depicting a rooster and hen below a plantain tree in similar grounds, a four-character mark to the base in underglaze-blue within a double-square, cai hua tang zhi ('Hall of Brilliant Colors') - diameter 8 1/2 in., 21.6 cm - Estimate: 20,000—30,000 USD

Notes: A pair of dishes of the same motif, size and hallmark was sold in our London rooms, 3rd December 1974, lot 548. See also another dish sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 27th May 1978, lot 735. The hallmark cai hua tang zhi refers to a location in the Imperial Palace during the Qianlong and Jiaqing periods.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art including Chinese and Japanese Art from The Collection of Frieda and Milton Rosenthal. 16 Sep 08. www.sotheby's.com