QIANLONG (1736-95)

Details

A RARE FAMILLE ROSE 'MASONIC' TANKARD
Qianlong (1736-95)
Of cylindrical form with slightly incurving rim, applied with entwined berried strap handle and two rows of small bosses, one around the foot and the other at the shoulder, enamelled and gilt with the masonic symbols, including rain clouds, radiant sun, the moon, crossed keys, crossed feathers, and plumb line around a gilt encircled star with the letter G, all enclosed in a heart-shaped panel between floral clusters on the sides and floral swags suspended from a stylised chain at the rim
6 in. (15 cm.) high

Special notice

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Lot Essay

Masonic porcelain was commissioned in China from the mid-18th Century until the early 19th Century, and it was mainly in the form of bowls and tankards. The tankards were often presented by masons to their lodges. The shape of the tankard in the present lot is unusual. More common are the cylindrical and bell-shaped masonic tankards, which can be found in the British Museum, exhibited Ancient Chinese Trade Ceramics, 1994, Taibei, no.42, also illustrated by M. Beurdeley, Porcelain of the East India Companies, 1962, cat.149, p.184; in the Hodroff Collection, illustrated by David S. Howard, The Choice of the Private Trader, 1994, no.227, p.196; others have been exhibited in A Tale of Three Cities, Canton, Shanghai & Hong Kong, 1997, catalogue numbers 167 and 168; and in Philadelphians and The China Trade, 1784-1844, catalogue numbers 236 and 237.

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