A CHINESE EXPORT 'THE ARBOUR' JUG circa 1740

painted on either side with a Chinese lady and her attendant beneath a topiary arch near four children playing by a duck pond between a small tree with two perched birds and a gilt-flowering shrub on the front and flanking the purple-diapered handle, the rim and footrim with turquoise diapered borders reserved on the rim with panels of insects and fruit alternating with iron-red shells.

Ets M. Vandermeersch SA, Paris, June 16, 1991

San Francisco, Fall Antiques Show, 1995
New York, International Asian Art Fair, 2002

Good condition, enamel taken slightly irregularly on the handle.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

According to Jörg 1980, p. 34, the design for this pattern, known as 'The Arbour', was the fourth and last identifiable drawing made by Cornelis Pronk for the Dutch East India Company.  Executed in 1737, "it was sent to Batavia by the Heeren XVII in 1738 and received in Canton in 1739." The pattern was executed in underglaze-blue, plates of which are illustrated ibid., p. 79, no. 48, and p. 80, color pl. IX; and by Howard 1994, p. 75, no. 56; and a dish is illustrated by Jörg 1989, p. 151, no. 51; and Wirgin, p. 176, no. 190.  It seems to be found more frequently, however, in the far more successful famille-rose enameled version, dishes and plates of which are illustrated by Beurdeley, p. 177, cat. 124; Clunas, p. 65, no. 48; Forbes, p. 42, no. 69; Howard 1994, p. 75, no. 55; Howard and Ayers, Vol. I, p. 301, no. 295; Jörg 1982, p. 104, fig. 38; Jörg 1989, p. 153, no. 52; Le Corbeiller 1973, p. 45, no. 30; Le Corbeiller 1974, p. 59, fig. 24; Litzenburg and Bailey, p. 177, no. 172; and Lunsingh Scheurleer, pl. 202. A pair of jugs similar to the present example is illustrated in the catalogue of The Wendy and Emery Reves Collection (Dallas Museum of Art, 1985), p. 195.

A saucer dish in this pattern was sold at Christie's in New York on January 23, 2008, lot 114.