Beschreibung:

Lot details China, 1736-1795. Each delicately and thinly potted, with deep rounded and translucent sides rising from a short, slightly spreading foot to an everted rim. Delicately reverse-decorated in a rich iron-red enamel with a row of peony heads, alternating with smaller lotus above a row of lotus blossoms, all borne on interlocked foliate scrolls reserved in white against the opaque coral ground, the interior left undecorated. The recessed white bases with underglaze-blue six-character seal marks da Qing Qianlong nianzhi and of the period. Provenance: From a private collection in New York, USA. Condition: Superb condition with only minor old wear and minimal firing flaws, such as dark spots and minuscule irregularities in the red enamel along the foot. The glaze with a magnificent, unctuous feel overall. In such pristine condition, the present bowls must be considered exceedingly rare. Weight: 139.2 g and 139.5 g Dimensions: Diameter 12.9 cm and 13 cm This exquisite pair of bowls is notable for the meticulously executed floral scroll, which creates a sharp and pleasing contrast against the iron-red ground. While iron red was already used to decorate Cizhou wares in the Jin dynasty (1115-1234), and was adopted at Jingdezhen during the Yuan dynasty, it was only in the 18th century, when all enamels were scrutinized as to their unique properties, that its decorative potential was fully realized. Iron red, which adheres in a thin, opaque layer, allows for razor-sharp lines, which could not be achieved with other enamels that are thicker and glassier. This property makes ‘negative’ reverse designs most successful, giving them a delicacy which can only rarely be seen on ‘positive’ paintings above a white ground. The reverse effect, combined with the unique translucency of the pottery, creates a stunning appearance once sunbeams shine through the bowls. Porcelain wares decorated with ‘negative’ reverse designs on an iron-red ground are the product of the creative genius of Tang Ying (1682-1756), Superintendent of the Imperial kilns during the Yongzheng and early Qianlong periods. A bondservant of the Plain White Banner, who had served at the court from the age of 16, Tang is credited with the introduction of novel techniques and designs at the kilns. Luxuriant floral scrolls against an iron-red ground first appeared on Yongzheng mark and period boxes, but with additional butterflies, such as one in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong: Qing Porcelain from the Palace Museum Collection, Hong Kong, 1989, plate 70, and another from the Sir Percival David collection and now in the British Museum, London, published in Margaret Medley, Illustrated Catalogue of Ming Polychrome Wares, London, 1978, plate 163. During the Qianlong period, this reverse-decorated floral design was modified to be used on the outside of bowls, yet without butterflies. Fitted box. (2) Literature comparison: A related bowl with Qianlong mark, in the Percival David Foundation, is illustrated in Oriental Ceramics, The World's Great Collections, vol. 6, Tokyo, 1982, pl. 94. Three related bowls, also with Qianlong marks, in the Ohlmer Collection, Roemer Museum, Hildesheim, are illustrated by U. Wiesner, Chinesisches Porzellan, Mainz am Rhein, 1981, no. 130-2. See S. Marchant and Son, Nineteenth Century Mark and Period Porcelain, London, 7-28 June, 1992, no. 28, for a pair of Qianlong mark and period bowls of identical decoration and size. Auction result comparison: Compare a pair of near-identical bowls (12.8 cm diameter), also with Qianlong seal marks and of the period, of identical form and decoration, at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in Marchant – Fifty Qing Imperial Porcelains on 10 July 2020, lot 3131, sold for HKD 1,750,000 (for a pair). Compare a near-identical bowl (12.7 cm diameter), also with Qianlong seal mark and of the period, of identical form and decoration, at Christie’s New York in Marchant: Nine Decades in Chinese Art on 14