Lot 3005. A brilliantly enamelled yellow-ground famille-rose 'phoenix' vase, Seal mark and period of Qianlong (1736-1795). Estimate 5,000,000 — 7,000,000 HKD (572,990 - 802,185 EUR). Photo Sotheby's.

 masterfully potted with an ovoid body rising from a slightly splayed foot to a tall waisted neck and flared rim, the neck flanked by a pair of gilt handles suspending mock beribboned chimes resting elegantly on the lower neck, the exterior of the vessel decorated with two pairs of multi-coloured phoenix flanking peony blooms borne on meandering foliate scrolls further issuing delicately picked out blossoms, including clusters of hydrangea and lotus blooms, below a pair of phoenix swooping downwards towards large peony blossoms borne on curling stems issuing camellia blossoms, the detail all picked out in delicately shaded tones of blue, pink, green and white against a vibrant yellow ground, the rim decorated with a pendent ruyi band below the gilt rim, the interior and base enamelled turquoise, the base centred with an iron-red seal mark within a white cartouche, stand - 37.5 cm, 14 3/4  in.

Provenance: Collection of Mrs. D.A. Bailey, Melbourne.
Sotheby's London, 13th July 2005, lot 268.

Receipt

Note: This vase is an outstanding example of the technical and creative ingenuity of craftsmen working in the imperial kilns at Jingdezhen. The motif of two phoenix flanking a central flower appears to have been a favourite of the Qianlong Emperor and graced vases of various forms as well as moonflasks. However, by placing the design against a yellow ground and rendering the floral scroll in a Western French rococo style, this vase appears highly original and exotic in accordance with the lavish taste of the emperor.

The skill of the Qing craftsmen is evident in the various renditions of the phoenix and peony motif; see an underglaze blue and polychrome enamel fanghu vase, sold in our London rooms, 15th May 2013, lot 176; and a copper-red version, published inThe Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red (III), Shanghai, 2000, pl. 176. For moonflasks with this design, see one, the phoenix and peony blooms rendered in pink enamel amongst scrolling underglaze blue foliage, from the Matsuoka Art Museum, Tokyo, included in Sekai toji zenshu, vol. 15, Tokyo, 1983, pls. 92-93; and its counterpart, sold in these rooms, 24th November 1987, lot  189, and again at Christie's Hong Kong, 1st December 2010, lot 2968, from the Shorenstein collection; and another, but with birds painted in iron-red, from the collection of Major the Hon. Robert Carnegie, sold at Christie's Paris, 22nd November 2006, and again, Christie's London, 11th May 2015, lot 15. Compare also a famille-rose enamelled vase with archaistic phoenix flanking a lotus bloom, in the Qing court collection and still in Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Porcelains with Cloisonné Enamel Decoration and Famille Rose Decoration, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 95; and its counterpart, from the collections of the Art House and John and Anne Hamilton, sold in these rooms, 7th April 2015, lot 3607.

The handles of this vase are in the form of ji, the ancient halberd weapon used by infantry soldiers that consists of a shaft with a spear or crescent-shaped blade. It is a homophone for the character ji, meaning 'lucky' or 'auspicious'. The ji-shaped handle is thus a visual pun for auspiciousness. Of the coloured-ground wares, yellow appears to have been a favourite of the Qianlong Emperor, probably as the colour was reserved for the emperor. Compare a pair of wall vases, with lotus scrolls surrounding a floral circular panel, from the Huaihaitang collection, included in the exhibition Ethereal Elegance. Porcelain Vases of the Imperial Qing, Art Museum, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 2007, cat. no. 132.

Sotheby's. Emperors’ Playthings – a Connoisseur’s Collection, Hong Kong, 06 avr. 2016, 02:20 PM