A 'BONELESS' FAMILLE-ROSE 'CHRYSANTHEMUM' MEIPING SEAL MARK AND PERIOD OF QIANLONG

of ovoid form with a short waisted neck below a slightly everted mouthrim, deftly painted around the sides with large blossoming chrysanthemums, in shaded pink, white, iron-red and yellow growing from a large porous garden rock, beside the twin trunks of a sparsely foliated tree, the base inscribed in iron-red with a four-character reign mark

Sotheby's Hong Kong, 12th May 1976, lot 280.
Sotheby's Hong Kong, 18th May 1988, lot 277.

The overall condition is very good, apart from some occasional flakes and scratches to the enamels, and some minor glaze pulls to the base. The mouthrim has been slightly polished, with minute traces of gilt-decoration.
"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."

Charmingly painted with colourfully rendered butterflies and chrysanthemums of a broad palette, meiping vases of this design are rare. This vase is a good example of the developments in painting during the eighteenth century where craftsmen were able to attain a spectrum of enamel colours previously unseen in Chinese porcelain. The scene on the present vase is painted in the 'boneless style', where wash and colour were emphasised and line was reserved for the rendering of the veins, such as the leaves and wings of the butterflies. This technique was rarely employed on porcelain and generally reserved for smaller wares.

For a Yongzheng baluster vase painted with peony, chrysanthemum and lily blooms issuing from rockwork and a pair of butterflies in the 'boneless style' see one from the Frederick E. Fuller collection sold twice in our Los Angeles rooms, 25^th September 1972, lot 99, again, 14^th June 1979, lot 1217, and a third time in these rooms, 3^rd May 1994, lot 228. This style of painting continued into the nineteenth century as seen in a Daoguang globular vase, decorated with a fruiting and flowering pomegranate tree and rockwork sold in these rooms, 5^th May 1990, lot 274.