A MASSIVE PAIR OF CHINESE EXPORT PORCELAIN FAMILLE ROSE BLUE-GROUND SOLDIER VASES AND COVERS
A MASSIVE PAIR OF CHINESE EXPORT PORCELAIN FAMILLE ROSE BLUE-GROUND SOLDIER VASES AND COVERS
A MASSIVE PAIR OF CHINESE EXPORT PORCELAIN FAMILLE ROSE BLUE-GROUND SOLDIER VASES AND COVERS
2 More
A MASSIVE PAIR OF CHINESE EXPORT PORCELAIN FAMILLE ROSE BLUE-GROUND SOLDIER VASES AND COVERS

QIANLONG PERIOD (1736-1795)

Details
A MASSIVE PAIR OF CHINESE EXPORT PORCELAIN FAMILLE ROSE BLUE-GROUND SOLDIER VASES AND COVERS
QIANLONG PERIOD (1736-1795)
Each with three large, elaborately shaped panels enclosing finely painted peony growing from weathered rocks, all on a blue ground and surrounded by smaller cartouches of peony and lotus, the footrim with an iron-red and peach band of upright scroll panels enclosing ribbon-tied precious objects, the domed covers surmounted by Buddhist lion finials, together with a pair of giltwood stands
54 ½ in. (138.4 cm.) high, excluding the giltwood stands
Provenance
Acquired from Duveen Brothers, 1961 (by repute).
Sale room notice
Please note there is additional provenance for this lot:
Acquired from Duveen Brothers, 1961 (by repute).

Brought to you by

Jill Waddell
Jill Waddell Vice President, Senior Specialist

Check the condition report or get in touch for additional information about this

If you wish to view the condition report of this lot, please sign in to your account.

Sign in
View condition report

Lot Essay

In 1717 the porcelain-obsessed Augustus the Strong (1670-1733), Elector of Saxony and King of Poland, famously traded six hundred of his own cavalrymen, known as dragoons, to Frederick the Great of Prussia, in exchange for a collection of 150 Chinese porcelain vases; eighteen of which were imposing floor vases, of the same scale as the present lot. Thereafter these monumental vases were known as 'dragoon vases' (dragonervasen) or 'soldier vases'. Extremely difficult to make, to pack and to ship, these massive vases were destined for the European elite, where they stood guard in ballrooms and great halls of palaces and country houses. The Jesuit traveler to Jingdezhen, Père d'Entrecolles, recorded in his famous letters, "...Urns above three Foot high without the Lid...out of twenty-four eight only succeeded...These Works were bespoke by the Merchants of Canton for the European trade."

More from Global Treasury: The Life and Collection of Selim & Mary Zilkha

View All
View All