A CLOISONNE ENAMEL TRIPOD CENSER MARK AND PERIOD OF QIANLONG

the compressed spherical body with slightly flared collar and flat everted lip mounted with a pair of vertical 'U'-shaped handles, all supported on three sturdy cabriole feet, decorated in colourful enamels on a turquoise ground with symmetrical lotus and floral scrollwork, the collar and top of legs encircled by a ruyi-head band, underside with an inset bronze square incised with the four-character mark in a horizontal line above the character jie, wood stand

Sotheby's London, 29th October 1982, lot 29.
S. Marchant & Son, London.
Rolf Heiniger, Hong Kong and Switzerland.
S. Marchant & Son, London.
Acquired by the present owner from the above, June 2007.

S. Marchant & Son, "The Rolf Heininger Collection of Qing Imperial Wares", 4th June-23rd June 2000, no. 15.

The censer is overall in good condition. There is slight scattered spotting to the gilt surface, and scattered pits to the enamels, some of which have been filled in.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The present piece is one of a group of four known censers of nearly identical form and decoration.  These censers all bear a different incised character in addition to the four-character reign mark incised on the underside.  The first, offered in our London rooms, 11th May 1978, lot 76, with incised character han; the second, sold in our London rooms, 15th June, 1979, lot 29, with incised character p'o (bo); the third, the present example, with incised character jie; and the fourth, sold in our New York rooms, 25th February, 1983, lot 134, with incised character zao.  According to the catalogue entry for this piece in the exhibition at S. Marchant & Son in 2000, "it has been suggested that this is one of a group of pieces made for a specific festival." (op. cit. no. 15, p. 36)

Another cloisonné enamel tripod censer, of different form, with lotus-scroll decoration and incised four-character Qianlong mark and of the period, with additional incised character, similar to the above group, is illustrated in Helmut Brinker and Albert Lutz, Chinese Cloisonné. The Pierre Uldry Collection, Zurich, 1989, nos. 245, 245a.  Brinker and Lutz discuss this use of a supplemental character with the reign mark found on some cloisonné pieces of the Qianlong period, suggesting these characters refer to locations or possibly, when related pieces are assembled, the characters confer a salutation or propitious wish (ibid. p. 74).