Important Chinese Art
Important Chinese Art
The Legacy of Cixi. Late Qing Porcelain from the Barbara Jean Levy Collection
A group of coral-red-ground famille-rose 'imperial wedding' wares, Qing dynasty, Tongzhi period | 清同治 珊瑚紅地粉彩開光龍鳳呈祥紋瓷一組 《長春同慶》《燕喜同和》《光緒年製》《同治年製》款
Auction Closed
September 20, 05:51 PM GMT
Estimate
40,000 - 60,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
A group of coral-red-ground famille-rose 'imperial wedding' wares
Qing dynasty, Tongzhi period
清同治 珊瑚紅地粉彩開光龍鳳呈祥紋瓷一組 《長春同慶》《燕喜同和》《光緒年製》《同治年製》款
comprising two large bowls, two zhadou, a pair of cups and stands, four dishes of varying sizes, fourteen bowls of varying shapes and sizes, two bowl covers, and two spoons, most with dragon and phoenix roundels and a four-character Changchun tongqing mark or a Yanxi tonghe mark in iron red, together with a large bowl of similar pattern with a Guangxu four-character mark in iron red and a 'xi' saucer with a Tongzhi four-character mark in iron red (32)
Diameter of largest 8¼ in., 21.2 cm
the pair of zhadou: Solveig and Anita Gray, London, 18th October 1993.
a bowl, cover, and saucer: Solveig and Anita Gray, London, 5th November 1993.
the pair of large bowls and a pair of small bowls: Luen Chai Curios Store, Hong Kong, 31st December 1993.
one bowl: Ronald W. Longsdorf, 24th January 1994.
the Tongzhi mark and period saucer: Jonathan Robinson Oriental Ceramics & Works of Art, London, 17th March 1994.
two bowls and the pair of spoons: Eileen Kershaw, Hong Kong, 1st January 1995.
one saucer: P.C. Lu Works of Art Limited, Hong Kong, 6th January 1995.
three bowls: Solveig and Anita Gray, London, 15th November 1995.
one bowl: Chinese Arts & Crafts (H.K.) Ltd., Hong Kong, 25th December 1995.
one dish: Orientique, Hong Kong, 5th January 2005.
渣斗一對: Solveig and Anita Gray，倫敦，1993年10月18日
蓋、盌、小盤: Solveig and Anita Gray，倫敦，1993年11月5日
大盌一對、小盌一對: 聯齊古玩號，香港，1993年12月31日
盌之一: Ronald W. Longsdorf, 1994年1月24日
《同治年製》款小盤: Jonathan Robinson Oriental Ceramics & Works of Art, 倫敦，1994年3月17日
盌兩件、勺一對: Eileen Kershaw，香港，1995年1月1日
小盤之一: P.C. Lu Works of Art Limited，香港，1995年1月6日
盌三件: Solveig and Anita Gray，倫敦，1995年11月15日
盌之一: 中藝（香港）有限公司，香港，1995年12月25日
盤之一: 古慶堂，香港，2005年1月5日
Ronald W. Longsdorf, 'The Tongzhi Imperial Wedding Porcelain', Orientations, October 1996, figs 24, 29-31.
Ronald W. Longsdorf，〈The Tongzhi Imperial Wedding Porcelain〉，《Orientations》，1996年10月, 圖24及29至31
This extraordinary assemblage adorned with dragons and phoenixes is believed to have been produced as part of the famous 'Wedding Set' of porcelains commissioned for the marriage of the Tongzhi Emperor in 1872. The preparation for the wedding, including commissions for the porcelain, began in 1867, but the quality of the first shipment was well below Cixi's standard. It was not until the year of the wedding that the imperial kiln submitted works that were deemed satisfactory.
The works in the present service are replete with auspicious designs of marital harmony. The dragon and phoenix, representative of the emperor and empress, are separated by double xi (happiness) characters, repeated to the interiors. Some of the pieces in the service are inscribed 'Yanxi tonghe', a phrase that combines the palaces names for the Tongzhi Emeror's empress and consort in the Forbidden City. As Ying-Chen Peng argues in this catalogue (p. 68), the presence of 'Changchun tongqing' (jointly celebrating eternal spring) inscriptions may also suggest they were commissioned for a wedding banquet to be held in Changchungong, within the Forbidden City. A bowl from this service in the Palace Museum, Beijing is illustrated Zhang Han, 'Xiqing jixiang: Wanqing Tongzhi dahun ciqi pashu [Auspicious: Late Qing Dynasty Tongzhi wedding porcelain]', Forbidden City, vol. 12, 2020, p. 104. Compare also a large circular box and cover in the Qing Court Collection, likely belonging to the same commission, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Porcelains with Cloisonné Enamel Decoration and Famille Rose Decoration, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 231.