A very rare Imperial famille rose peony bowl, China, underglaze blue Qianlong seal mark and period. Estimate 30000/40000 €. Lot sold 75.000 €. Photo Nagel

finely potted with flared sides, rising from a short footring, exquisitely painted on the interior in brilliant famille-rose enamels amongst flowering peonies, the exterior similarly decorated with peony blossoms and delicate buds on a gnarled and leafy stem, inscribed on the base with the six-character seal mark in underglaze-blue. D. 11 cm. Few tiny glaze imperfections inside at the bottom, good condition.

Property from a German private collection - Former collection Lord Illford of Bury, Sotheby's London, 8.7.1975, Lot 152 

O.C.S. Exhibition 'Enamelled Polychrome Porcelain of the Manchu Dynasty, London 1951, catalogue number 179

Note: In a superb display of artistic proficiency, these exquisitely enamelled cups are extremely rare for their design which rises from the foot and over the rim into the interior. This decorative technique is known as guozhi, and was one of the great innovations of Tang Ying, Superintendent at the Imperial kilns in Jingdezhen. Designs were wrapped around vessels by treating the three-dimensional porcelain surface like a two-dimensional canvas, a method more commonly known on Yongzheng wares enamelled with flowering and fruiting peach branches, such as a bowl illustrated in The Tsui Museum of Art, Chinese Ceramics IV. Qing Dynasty, Hong Kong 1995, pl. 155: 

Nagel Auktionen, "Asian Art",  06/06/2015