Jingdezhen

Pot-pourri, Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province, China, 1740. Porcelain and gilt bronze. George IV, King of the United Kingdom (1762-1830). The Royal Collection Trust, The British Monarchy.  Royal Collection © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Paul Braga snuff bottles. Photo: Bonhams HONG KONG.- Bonhams, the leading international auction house for Chinese snuff bottles, announces the sale of the Paul Braga Collection of Snuff Bottles on 24 November 2012 at the Island Shangri-La Hotel. The Paul Braga Collection provides a window into old Hong Kong, a bygone age when snuff bottles were displayed in baskets in antique shops and could be bought for several dollars each. Paul Braga was a true connoisseur in an era when little of substance was published on the subject, and the... [Lire la suite]

Kendi decorated in underglaze copper red, Jingdezhen, Ming dynasty, Hongwu period (1368-1398). Height: 15.3 cm, Width: 16 cm. C.54-1937. Sir Percival David Gift. © V&A Images. In the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) Jingdezhen became the major ceramic-manufacturing centre. Imperial kilns were established to produce fine porcelain for the exclusive use of the emperors. The tradition of inscribing the emperor's reign title on the wares also started in the Ming. This pure water vessel (kendi) painted in... [Lire la suite]

Porcelain stemcup decorated in underglaze red, Jingdezhen, Qing dynasty, Kangxi reign (1662-1722). Height: 9.1 cm, Diameter: 9.1 cm. C.108-1929. H.B. Harris Bequest. © V&A Images. Porcelain stem cup with high foot, painted in underglaze copper red with three stylised fish, equally distanced. Apocryphal 'Da Ming Xuande nian zhi' in underglaze blue inside the foot Made during the Xuande reign of the Great Ming. This cup was produced in the imperial kilns of Jingdezhen in south China during the... [Lire la suite]

Wine jar, Porcelain painted in underglaze cobalt blue. Jingdezhen. Ming dynasty, Longqing mark and period (1567-1572). Height: 42.9 cm, Diameter: 48.9 cm. FE.111-1975. Bushell Gift. © V&A Images. Thickly potted jar of broad based globular form, with short, wide neck. It is white porcelain painted with underglaze cobalt blue with a repeating pattern of pairs of phoenix shaped into large medallions and dragons in decorative bands around the shoulder and the base. This thickly potted jar... [Lire la suite]

Porcelain incense burner imitating ding ware, Jingdezhen, Ming dynasty, ca. 1550-1640. Height: 11.1 cm. CIRC.130-1935. Purchased with the assistance of The Art Fund, the Vallentin Bequest, Sir Percival David and the Universities China Committee.  © V&A Images.  Porcelain incense burner shaped as an archaic bronze vessel, with circular foot and two handles departing from dragon heads; the body is decorated with raised lines. This porcelain incense burner was made in the imperial kilns of... [Lire la suite]

Chinese ewer with South Asian metalwork shape. Porcelain ewer painted in underglaze blue, Jingdezhen, China, Qing dynasty, Kangxi reign, ca. 1680-1710. Diameter: 17.8 cm, Height: 28.0 cm. 1581-1876. © V&A Images. This ewer (aftaba) was acquired for the Museum in Iran. The shape imitates a South Asian metalware ewer which is usually accompanied by a basin. It was made at the Jingdezhen kilns in south-wast China for export to India or the Middle East, where these ewers and basin sets were used for handwashing.... [Lire la suite]

Dish. Porcelain, with underglaze cobalt blue. China, Jingdezhen, Yuan dynasty, about 1350. Height: 13 cm, Diameter: 46 cm. C.10-1954 © V&A Images. The basin is made up of a floral and leaf design. The outer has fifteen flowers painted all the way around separated by stems with budding leaves or other flowers. The outer rim separates the next rim in with a thin white border – this second inner rim has the same pattern as the outer rim but with larger motifs of the same design. Another thin white border... [Lire la suite]

Flask with dragon. China, Jingdezhen. Yuan dynasty, 1300–68. Porcelain painted in underglaze blue. Height: 37.0 cm, Width: 28.0 cm, Depth: 9.0 cm. Museum no. C.47-1935. Purchased with the assistance of The Art Fund, the Vallentin Bequest, Sir Percival David and the Universities China Committee [September 2009] © V&A Images The design of dragons and 'cloud collars' here was painted in a blue derived from cobalt - a revolutionary innovation at the time that this flask was made. Known as... [Lire la suite]

Dish. Porcelain, painted in underglaze blue. Jingdezhen. China, Ming dynasty, Xuande mark and period (1426-1435). Height: 4.1 cm registers, Diameter: 20.1 cm registers. Mrs B.Z. Seligman Bequest. FE.194-1974. Victoria & Albert Museum © V&A Images A dish with rounded sides everted at the rim, straight foot with unglazed foot ring and slightly convex base. Painted in a rich blue which has precipitated to give a 'heaped and piled' effect. On the inside is a five-clawed dragon among waves... [Lire la suite]