A fine copper-red and green-enamel waterpot, China, underglaze-blue six-character mark Kangxi and of the period. Photo Nagel Auktionen

The ovoid body with short everted neck tapering to a shallow foot rim and recessed base, finely painted in underglaze-red of rose tone with two rose blossoms borne on leafy branches in green enamel issuing from the base, the crackled glaze stopping neatly around the foot - Tiny burst glaze bubble to mouth rim. H. 8,2 cm. Estimate 150 000/200 000 €

Provenance: Private collection Rhineland, bought from Christie's London, 7.12.1984, Lot 948

There are very few Qing ceramics where underglaze-copper-red is associated with overglaze-enamel decoration, especially where a deliberate naturalistic effect is being created without using a famille rose enamel to create a required red element. In some cases, copper-red decoration is associated with puce enamel , but normally this is only applied over the glaze to strengthen the underglaze colour or perhaps to conceal small mis-fired areas of copper-red; the combination is seen sometimes on large blue and white pieces which include copper-red decoration.

There seem to be two kinds of Kangxi water-pots, which use copper-red for the heads of rose sprays, with the remainder of the stem and leaves overglaze-enamelled in aubergine, two tones of green and black . Kangxi water-pots of both forms and decoration are quite widely represented in public collections.

The more globular ones of the type represented by the present piece can be found at the Baur Collection, Catalogue, vo. IV, no. 539; at the Percival David Foundation, Catalogue, section 3, no. B702; in the Shanghai Museum, illustrated in Chugoku Toji Zenshu, vol. 21, pl. 84; in the Beijing, Palace Museum, see Beijing, pl. 24.

Several examples have been exhibited, particularly in Hong Kong; see the Exhibiton of Porcelain from the Wah Kwong Collection, 1973, Catalogue, no. 74; the Hong Kong O.C.S. Exhibition of Ch'ing Polychrome Porcelain, 1977, Catalogue, no. 42; The Min Chiu Society, An Anthology of Chinese Ceramics, 1980, Catalogue, no. 140; and the Kau Chi Society, Exhibition of Ancient Chinese Ceramics, 1981, Catalogue, no. 144 

Nagel Auktionen. 2013/05/08. http://www.auction.de/