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Lot Essay
Foreigners depicted with large round eyes and noses, thick curly beards and hair have been a popular motif in Chinese art as early as the Tang dynasty (618-906), when the increased presence of foreigners in China brought in new fascination among the Chinese and led to a gradual stylisation of the image of the foreigner in Chinese art.
Compare the present candle holders with a pair of cloisonné figures of foreigners with similar stance and facial features, dated to the late Ming period, from the Juan Jose Amezaga Collection, sold by Christie's Paris, 7 December 2007, lot 7; and now in the Robert Chang Collection included in the exhibition, Colourful, Elegant, and Exquisite: A Special Exhibition of Imperial Enamel Ware from Mr. Robert Chang's Collection, Suzhou, 2007, p. 90-91. Another comparable pair of cloisonné enamel and gilt-bronze pricket candlesticks in the form of foreign figures, from the Mandel Collection, dated Kangxi period, was sold by Christie's Hong Kong, 30 May 2012, lot 3906.
Compare the present candle holders with a pair of cloisonné figures of foreigners with similar stance and facial features, dated to the late Ming period, from the Juan Jose Amezaga Collection, sold by Christie's Paris, 7 December 2007, lot 7; and now in the Robert Chang Collection included in the exhibition, Colourful, Elegant, and Exquisite: A Special Exhibition of Imperial Enamel Ware from Mr. Robert Chang's Collection, Suzhou, 2007, p. 90-91. Another comparable pair of cloisonné enamel and gilt-bronze pricket candlesticks in the form of foreign figures, from the Mandel Collection, dated Kangxi period, was sold by Christie's Hong Kong, 30 May 2012, lot 3906.