A famille-rose 'European subject' vase, Qing dynasty, 18th century. Photo: Sotheby's.

of square section supported on a recessed splayed foot of circular section, the upright sides rising to a slightly tapered rim, delicately enamelled on four sides with various fair-haired figures dressed in European attire in the foreground against Chinese architecture in a rural setting, one side painted with a gentleman and lady strolling with a dog, another with figures waving to one another across a lake, another of two gentlemen conversing in a carefree manner, another with a gentleman walking while holding a vase with a blossoming flower, the sides separated with a gilt-rimmed border along the edges, all between the foot and shoulders decorated with floral scrolls painted in multi-coloured enamels against a lime-green ground, wood stand; 22 cm., 8 5/8 in. Estimate 1,200,000 — 1,500,000 HKD

Note: Porcelain wares painted with European figures are rare, and this piece is particularly notable for the combination of a traditional Chinese form (cong) with scenes of foreign figures. Examples of porcelain wares depicting Europeans in landscape include a Qianlong mark and period matchbox, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, included in Museum’s exhibition Stunning Decorative Porcelains from the Ch’ien-lung Reign, 2008, cat. no. 62; another illustrated in Kangxi. Yongzheng. Qianlong. Qing Porcelain from the Palace Museum Collection, Hong Kong, 1989, p. 427 pl. 109; a box included in the exhibition Imperial Perfection. The Palace Porcelain of Three Chinese Emperors. Kangxi. Yongheng. Qianlong, The Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, 2004, cat. no. 55; a pear-shaped vase sold at Christie’s London 5th October 1970, lot 78; and a similarly painted bowl, with a Qianlong mark and of the period, sold in our London rooms, 10th November 2010, lot 131. See also a famille-rose vase decorated with panels depicting Chinese and foreign figures in landscapes, sold in these rooms, 22nd May 1984, lot 132.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art. Hong Kong | 08 Apr 2014 -www.sothebys.com