A Böttger Hausmaler porcelain teapot and cover, circa 1720. Photo Sotheby's

of globular form with domed cover, painted in delicate enamels with Chinese figures contemplating large flowering plants, the cover with further plants issuing from rockwork and with insects and branches, the spout with grotesque mask terminal (some wear and minute chips); 13.5cm, 5 1/4 in high. Estimate 3,000-5,000 GBP

PROVENANCE: Sotheby's London, 11 November 1972, lot 147 (sold as Du Paquier)Christie's Geneva,12 May 1986, lot 293

NOTE: The Hausmaler workshop responsible for the decoration of this teapot and cover remains unknown. For teabowls and saucers painted by a similar hand, see Sotheby's, London, 24 February 1981, lot 70 and Bonhams, London, 3 December 2008, lot 161.

Sotheby's. The Collection of Giovanni and Gabriella Barilla, Londres | 14 mars 2012