1000 Butterfly's

QING PERIOD (1644 to 1911)

AN EXTREMELY RARE BUTTERFLY MELON 珐琅彩 FALANGCAI BOWL

An unparalleled ' Pièce de Résistance '

The bowl with rounded sides resting on a short foot. A spectacular portrayal of delicately painted butterfly's in exquisite detail, as they flutter at varying heights in an absolute glorious array of colours, hues, and accents.
Lavender, lilac, blue, aqua, green, yellow, lime, orange.
Intricately painted plump melons in tones of iron-red, grey-black, turquoise, lime-green, and puce, dangling from intertwining meandering vines from which broad five-pronged leaves issue forth.
Interspersed a multitude of small bright yellow blossoms with red stamen.

This magnificent composition set against a pale pastel green ground.
The rim bordered with inverted ruyi heads in pale lavender on white.
The short foot bordered in upright foliate lappets of sea green, separated by stylised linked ruyi heads in blue, then, by hanging buds in dark lavender.
The interior enamelled mint green.
The base white with a four character Period Mark in blue set within a double square.

The splendour of this truly vibrant artwork can be compared in quality to the finest pieces of 珐琅彩 Falangcai, that were produced in the ' Ateliers of The Zaobanchu 造辦處 .

NOTE:
The design of beautifully painted butterflies hovering with their wings spread between rounded melons hanging from vines is extremely Rare.

It can be found recorded on only a very small number of exquisitely painted wares of the Qianlong period.
A few examples where such a design has been known and published are:

Chûgoku tôji zenshi (Japanese publication of Chinese Ceramic History vol. 21, Shanghai, 1981, pl. 125. of a Meiping Vase with the design of butterflies and melon and with the melons painted in the two pallets of iron-red and green.

Chûgoku tôji zenshi (Japanese publication of Chinese Ceramic History vol.11 Tokyo, 1996, p. 137, pls. 78 and 77.

A glass snuff bottle and a Beijing enamel snuff bottle, both painted with butterflies and melons, are located in the Palace Museum collection

The word for Melon in Chinese is Guā 瓜, it is a symbolism for longevity, and has the power to ward off demons.
The word for Butterfly is Húdié 蝴蝶. The second character is read as 'Tieh' this translates as 70 years, the butterfly symbolises a long life as well as young love.

Formerly the property of a Japanese collector

Condition: Excellent

Refer Large Images for details, quality and condition, they also form the description.
Depending on your computer monitor / phone / etc colour may vary to actual.
Dimensions are maximum measurements

Width about : 16.9 cm
Height about : 8.4 cm

A$6,500