Provenance
Jorge Welsh Works of Art, London/Lisbon, with their label to the base.
The Mr. and Mrs. Baert-Devos Collection, Belgium. Acquired from the above in 2017 and accompanied by a copy of their documentation folder. (see added scans)
Exhibited:
TEFAF Maastricht, Jorge Welsh Works of Art, 2017.
Description
Heavily potted with a bulbous body rising from a spreading foot to a tapering neck and broad everted rim, set with a curved handle. Painted in underglaze cobalt blue with a continuous figural landscape scene depicting four Chinese scholars. One scholar is seated beneath a willow tree beside a bundle of scrolls, while another, seated nearby, holds an open scroll. A third figure leans against rockwork observing the manuscript and holding a large flower, while a fourth attendant approaches carrying an object. The shoulder and neck are decorated with bands of stylised floral scrolls and tulip motifs, the latter reflecting Dutch taste. The handle is painted with stylised cloud motifs and floral scrolls.
This vessel belongs to the group of export wares known as schenk-kannen (wine or water jugs), a form derived from European metalwork and produced in considerable quantities for the Dutch market by the VOC. Their production became increasingly difficult following the fall of the Ming dynasty in 1644 and the subsequent political upheavals, resuming more fully after the establishment of Qing rule under the Kangxi Emperor. The popularity of these jugs in the Netherlands is evidenced by the numerous surviving examples fitted with later Dutch silver mounts during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
The decoration appears to represent part of a larger scholar’s gathering theme. A closely related scene is found on a Transitional blue and white vase in the Butler Collection, depicting two literati, one reading from a scroll to a companion seated beside a pile of scrolls. The similarity of the composition suggests that the present jug was decorated after a design circulating among Jingdezhen workshops during the late Ming period.
Reference:
An example of similar shape with metal mounts is in the Metropolitan Museum, New York, object number 17.61 (link). Another example of similar shape with metal mounts from the Hodroff Collection is illustrated in 'The Choice of the Private Trader', D. S. Howard, p. 208, no. 243.
Lot 91
Ming
L.: 15,4 cm - H.: 22,6 cm
Estimation
€ 5.000,00 – € 8.000,00
Provenance
Jorge Welsh Works of Art, London/Lisbon, with their label to the base.
The Mr. and Mrs. Baert-Devos Collection, Belgium. Acquired from the above in 2017 and accompanied by a copy of their documentation folder. (see added scans)
Exhibited:
TEFAF Maastricht, Jorge Welsh Works of Art, 2017.