S1654
Description
Chinese famille verte biscuit porcelain ‘piggyback’ group modelled as a standing smiling young man wearing long yellow ground floral robes and the official badge of a first-grade civil mandarin beneath three button tied clasps carrying a younger boy on his back who wears an aubergine ground flower head jacket, the base unglazed.
8 7/8 inches, 22.6 cm high.
Early Kangxi, circa 1680.
Carved wood stand.
Condition
Two fingers of right hand of boy restored and left hair piece. Top knot repair to man.
Provenance & Additional Information
- Formerly in the collection of Emily Norwood Trevor, New York, thence by decent to her nephew John B. Trevor, Jr., Palm Beach, Florida. Emily Norwood Trevor was the sister-in-law of Grenville Winthrop, the famous art collector whose collection was left to Harvard University in 1943. It is believed by family tradition that this piece was purchased from Duveen Brothers, New York, in the early 20th Century.
- Sold by Christie’s, New York, in their auction of Fine Chinese Ceramics, Jades and Works of Art, 19th September 2007, lot no. 359, pp. 346-347.
- Included by Marchant in their catalogue of Recent Acquisitions, 2008, no. 56, pp. 122-123.
- Included by Marchant in their exhibition of Kangxi Famille Verte, 2017, no. 5, pp. 18-19.
- A similar piece is illustrated by Anthony du Boulay in The Taft Museum, Cincinanati, It’s History and Collections, Vol. II, pp. 620-621. and was included in their exhibition of Ming to Ch’ing: Imperial Objects and Textiles, Masterpieces of Chinese Furniture, February 12th to June 30th 1975; another formerly in the collection of George Eumorfopoulos was included by William R. Sargent in The Copeland Collection, Chinese and Japanese Ceramic Figures, The Peabody Museum of Salem, no. 47, p. 103; another is illustrated by Frank Partridge and Sons Ltd. in their exhibition of A Collection of Old Chinese Porcelain, Summer 1933, no. 53.
Similar Items
37. M5319
£2,200Chinese famille verte biscuit porcelain miniature standing figure with his arms crossed wearing a yellow jacket, green and aubergine skirt and a basket pouch at his side, the face, arms and feet in clear glaze, all on a rockwork base.
3 ½ inches, 9 cm high.
Kangxi, 1662-1722.
S1662
A pair of Chinese porcelain famille verte rouleau vases, each painted with four central roundels representing the four seasons, peony, lotus, chrysanthemum and prunus, and each with a pair of different birds including mandarin ducks encircled by scrolling branches with lotus flower heads between stylised chrysanthemum with reverse pomegranate, above a band of lappets and beneath a wide band of mallow and tree peony on a continuous scrolling branch with leaves and gilt scrolls at the shoulder, the neck with two square panels with chamfered corners one with a pheasant amongst camellia the other with a kingfisher amongst tree peony between interlocked lotus flower heads and beneath stylised iron-red and gilt berries on the galleried rim, the underside with an underglaze blue double ring.
17 1/8 inches, 43.5cm high.
Kangxi, 1662-1722.
39. M5334
£6,200Pair of Chinese famille verte biscuit porcelain standing parrots, each perched on yellow glazed pierced rockwork, their detailed, moulded bodies stippled at the breast with overlapping feathers and long tail feathers and covered in a rich apple-green glaze, the eyes inset with black enamel, the beak and detailed claws left in the biscuit.
7 inches, 17.9 cm high.
Kangxi, 1662-1722.
Wood stands.
