Catalog: Antiques (338)

An Imari miniature condiment set of hexagonal baluster form decorated with trailing foliage in underglaze blue, iron red and gilding. Consisting of four small ewers, three marked with A for azin, vinegar, one marked with “S” for syrup; three with plain covers, one with a perforated cover. A complete pepper pot with perforated cover, 7cm high, and a pillar form salt, 6.2cm high...

An intriguing and rare dish that borrows its overall arrangement from a Chinese export Kangxi precedent, but given a distinctly Japanese twist. It is a parody on the theme of the Four Gentlemanly or scholarly accomplishments, Kinkishoga or Siyi, calligraphy, painting, reading poetry and playing music, mitate-e. Here the scholars are replaced by Bijin, elegant ladies at leisure, set in a large Garden arranged in a continuous frieze that is adapted from a Chinese export plate of the Kangxi period...

A saucer form dish decorated in a full five colour Ko Imari “wucai”, gosai palette. The design arranged in fuyo-de Kraak style with a border of six sectional compartments each containing a panels of “Persian flowers”, precious objects, and Chinese figures standing upon a bridge in a stylised landscape. The central mikomi painted with rocks, viewing stones, and foliage and Banana plantain, basho, flanking a pair of small “Deshima style” figures, standing on a podium...

A saucer form dish decorated in a full five colour Ko Imari “wucai”, gosai palette. The design arranged in fuyo-de Kraak style with a border of six sectional compartments each containing a panels of “Persian flowers”, precious objects, and Chinese figures standing upon a bridge in a stylised landscape. The central mikomi painted with rocks, viewing stones, and foliage and Banana plantain, basho, flanking a pair of small “Deshima style” figures, standing on a podium...

An Hirado incense burner of squat globular form with three scroll feet and lion mask handles with a high domed reticulated cover surmounted by a Shishi and ball filial. The body of the koro decorated in underglaze blue with a Chinese “ko sometsuke” style landscape. The censer is in good condition without chips, restoration, but there are some firing flaws notably to the juncture of the legs and to the body of the koro, and a minor firing crack to the rim...

A very finely potted dish decorated with a pattern of scattered shibagaki, bundles of brushwood, which would have formed part of a decorative garden hedge, with boughs of Plum blossom. This pattern was made for the domestic market and would have been particularly appropriate for the celebration of the New Year. The design is referencing the strong winds and storms of early spring. The dish is decorated in a combination of underglaze blue and “Kakiemon” enamels, over-glaze blue, green...

A very large Chinese porcelain wucai enameled ewer or wine pot of compressed ovoid form with cover decorated with an overall brocade pattern composed of hexagonal cells each containing an enamelled four petal flower inset with two large reserves containing respectively Camelias and Rocks, and Flowering Plum and Rocks. The body of the ewer is comparatively thinly potted, and the handle and spout are simply luted to the body with slip. The ewer was made for the Japanese market...

A very rare “mark and period” wucai dish dating to the late Ming period and the reign of the Emperor Tianqi decorated with the Chinese literati subject of the scholar Wang Xizhi standing beneath a Willow tree observing a flock of Geese in flight. Wang Zhi was a noted Chinese scholar and calligraphy master, known as the Sage of Calligraphy, who lived during the Jin Dynasty...

An interesting Chinese porcelain spoon heavily decorated in bright famille rose enamels, principally blue, green and puce inset with an Urdu inscription to the centre of the bowl indicating that it formed part of a service made for the Nawab Feizsalar and Begum Sahibe in 1824. Shop mark to the underside of the bowl in underglaze blue. In good condition, some minute rim frits, no cracks, chips or restoration. It measures 11.7cm in length.

A rather curious dish decorated in underglaze cobalt blue with an “American Eagle” grasping three arrows in its right claw and framed by a stylised Olive wreath. The reverse decorated with three clumps of stylised grasses and a shop mark within the foot-ring...

Finely potted blue and white Chinese export Canton handleless sugar bowl with minute, barely discernible firing flaws. About 5-1/2" W x 5-5/8" H. No chips, frits, hairlines or repairs. Sugar bowls with braided handles were harder to make and morphed into the later handleless ones, c. 1880-1910. Described as "rare" by the Schiffers in CHINESE EXPORT PORCELAIN, c. 1975. Insured shipping at cost.

A rare Arita zhadou form sake cup warmer. These unusually shaped vessels following the form of zhadou, Chinese lays jar, were used for the warming of sake cups, and as flower vases. The form of these cup warmers seem to follow Chinese Song precedents, an example of the Japanese preference for more classical Chinese forms, rather than later Ming and Qing examples, which characteristically have much wider openings...

A hexagonal moulded small bowl or mukuzuke decorated with alternating panels of Buddhist Lions and Peonies painted in a limited three colour palette of iron red, green and yellow enamels and a Camelia flower to the interior of the bowl based on a Chinese wucai pattern of the late Ming period. A cheerful auspicious pattern celebrating the season of spring. The Buddhist lions rendered as playful characters rather than as fierce guardians...

A fine quality early eighteenth century dish decorated with a rather unusual Indian “sarasa” pattern with a Buddhist theme. The design is composed of flowers arranged in columns and rows. Inset within the sarasa ground are three lobed niche like reserves each containing a Dharma singing bird, emanations of the Amitabha Buddha, that reside in the Buddha’s Pure Land paradise...

A fine quality early eighteenth century dish decorated with a rather unusual Indian “sarasa” pattern with a Buddhist theme. The design is composed of flowers arranged in columns and rows. Inset within the “sarasa” ground are three lobed niche like reserves each containing a Dharma singing bird, emanations of the Amitabha Buddha, that reside in the Buddha’s Pure Land paradise...

A rare Ko Imari rice bowl and cover decorated with European figures in a garden landscape one bald and holding a vase and the other with a broad rimed hat and a walking cane. The interior of both the bowl and the cover painted with a diaper band with demi-florets and an image of a “Dolphin” on a raised roundel. Both the cover and the bowl are quite delicately potted and the enamelling and painting is of a very high standard. The palette which includes a semi-opaque light green and blue com...

A rare and unusual Arita dish made for export to the West decorated with the subject of a Chinese Lady and her attendant viewing Plum blossom. It is probably adapted from a Chinese transitional original. The dish measures 8.5 inches in diameter and is in good condition with cracks, chips or restoration, except for some light crazing to a portion of the reverse and some glaze skip along the rim. The dish dates to the period 1680-1700

A nice quality Arita porcelain bowl decorated with a design of four panels of Hosoge or Karahana, Tang Flowers, in contrasting Iron red and under-glaze blue. This design appears in a number of variations on Chinese export porcelain from the late Kangxi period onwards, whether this is the precedent or homage to the Chinese pattern is difficult to say, but the porcelain would appear to be at least contemporary with the in general poorer quality Chinese examples. It dates to the period 1710-40. S...