YONGZHENG SIX-CHARACTER MARKS IN UNDERGLAZE BLUE WITHIN DOUBLE SQUARES AND OF THE PERIOD (1723-1735)

The delicate enamels and the design of this rare pair of cups are reminiscent of the refined doucai porcelains of the Chenghua reign, reflecting the antiquarian interests of the Yongzheng Emperor, who was known to have passionately collected and studied material from earlier dynasties. A Chenghua prototype for this design, with similar chrysanthemum panels alternating with formal lotus sprays is illustrated in Imperial porcelains from the Reign of Chenghua in the Ming Dynasty II, Beijing, 2016, pl. 179.7

Similar examples of doucai cups with a Yongzheng mark in a double square are represented in private and museum collections. A pair of similar size to the present pair is in the Alan Chuang Collection, illustrated by J. Thompson in The Alan Chuang Collection of Chinese Porcelain, Hong Kong, 2010, no. 51 and another example from the Ise Collection is illustrated by S. Makariou in The Enchanting Chinese Ceramics from the Ise Collection, Tokyo, 2017, p. 193, no. 75. A further pair from the Edward T. Chow Collection was sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 25 November 1980, lot 132; and again at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 20th May 1986, lot 108, and is now in the Hong Kong Museum of Art. See, also, the pair of larger (11.9 cm.) Yongzheng-marked doucai bowls of similar design, illustrated in Chinese Porcelain, The S. C. Ko Tianminlou Collection, Part I, Hong Kong, 1987, pl. 100.