enticz: June 2014

Monday, June 16, 2014

Colourful Straits Chinese Porcelains (3)

Dinner services in Peranakan homes could range from hundreds to thousands of plates, bowls and spoons of varying sizes and shapes as well as other functional objects. Plates comprised a mixture of serving plates, dinner plates and condiment dishes for the dining table and lobed dishes for the ancestral altar.

Kat mau / chepu / chupu / himcheng.

Above is a beautiful 'kat mau', as these covered vases are known in Singapore, or 'chepu' / 'chupu' as they are known in Malacca, or 'himcheng' as they were called in Penang. The body and cover are decorated with bright enamels. Lime-green borders decorated with pink peonies. The top of the base and bottom of the cover have red borders decorated with stylised Chinese key-fret patterns. The cover is topped with a white handle or pull. The edges of the cover and the base are finished with gilt. The base is with a factory mark in red enamel. Chupu vases had no definitive use but usually were part of the large wedding sets that the Straits Chinese commissioned from China. Possibly, they were used to serve bird's nest soup or glutinous rice balls in syrup, delicacies that by tradition signified marital bliss and prosperity. Diameter : 9.5cm, Height : 12.5cm.

Saucer-dish 1.
Diameter : 8.5cm.

Saucer-dish 1.

Saucer-dish 2.
Diameter : 9.5cm.

Saucer-dish 2.

Above are two saucer-dishes with curved-sides, everted gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rims and straight foot rings, decorated on a white ground with shades of pink, green and brown, white and black; the centre featuring a phoenix flying above peony blossoms. The inner rims decorated with a border featuring the first four only of the Eight Buddhist Emblems (wheel of law, conch shell, umbrella and canopy / flag) because of the plates' small size, on a deep rose pink ground. The white-glazed outer walls painted with two floral scrolls.

Serving plate 1.

Serving plate 2.

Serving plate 3.

Above are three serving plates with sloping sides, gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rims, shallow centres and short foot rings, decorated on a white ground with shades of pink, green and brown, white and black; the centre featuring a solitary phoenix perched on moss-covered rockery among peony sprays. The inner rims decorated with a border featuring the first four only of the Eight Buddhist Emblems (wheel of law, conch shell, umbrella and canopy / flag) because of the plates' small size, on a rose pink ground. The white-glazed outer walls painted with two or three floral scrolls. Diameter : 11cm.

Saucer-dish 1.

Saucer-dish 2.

Above are two Kakiemon wares saucer-dishes with the decoration featuring phoenixes perched on rockery among thickets of blossoming peonies with the border of four floral scrolls, and the centre with a pot of plum blossom. Diameter : 9cm.

Serving plate 1.

Serving plate 2.

Above are two Kakiemon wares serving plates with the decoration featuring phoenixes perched on rockery among thickets of blossoming peonies with the border of four floral scrolls, and the centre with a pot of plum blossom. Diameter : 11cm.

Dinner plate 1.
Diameter : 22cm.

Dinner plate 1.

Dinner plate 2.
Diameter : 22.5cm.

Dinner plate 2.

Above are two Kakiemon wares dinner plates with the decoration featuring phoenixes perched on rockery among thickets of blossoming peonies with the border of four floral scrolls, and the centre with a pot of plum blossom.

Saucer-dish 1.
Diameter : 14cm.

Saucer-dish 1.

Saucer-dish 2.
Diameter : 13.5cm.

Saucer-dish 2.

Above are two saucer-dishes with gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rims, flaring fluted cavetti and straight foot rings. The white-glazed interiors decorated with scattered sprigs of the flowers of the four seasons : peony (spring), lotus (summer), chrysanthemum (autumn) and plum blossom (winter), and butterflies and crickets. The fluted outer walls painted with three stylised iron red bats near the rim.

Dinner plate 1.

Dinner plate 2.

Above are two dinner plates with sloping sides, gilt-edged, shallow centres and short foot rings, decorated on a white ground with colourful shades. The central medallions featuring a pair of fruit, possibly pomegranates or peaches. The outer walls painted with four iron red bats. Diameter : 18cm.

Also check on "Colourful Straits Chinese Porcelains (1)" and "Colourful Straits Chinese Porcelains (2)".

Sunday, June 15, 2014

Colourful Straits Chinese Porcelains (2)

From my previous post about "Colourful Straits Chinese Porcelains (1)" dated 19th October 2011, below are some more Straits Chinese porcelains from my collection.

Also check on "Colourful Straits Chinese Porcelains (3)".

Oval-shaped spoon 1. Length : 12.5cm.
-Front-

Oval-shaped spoon 1.
-Back-

Oval-shaped spoon 2. Length : 12.5cm.
-Front-

Oval-shaped spoon 2.
-Back-

Above are two oval-shaped spoons, with flat bases and gilt-edged rims. The inside wells decorated with a coral red bamboo stem extending from the tip of the handles to the front of the spoons and on both sides of the wells surrounded by a pair of butterflies on green leaves. The bottom sides of the scoops painted with three iron red bats. "Tongzhi nian zhi" reign mark on the bases.

Dessert bowl.

The dessert bowl above is in ogee-shaped, with high rounded side, everted gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rim and high straight rose pink foot ring. The exterior decorated on a white ground with a luxuriant peony spray. The inside well featuring a pink and white peony bloom and leaves. The inner rim is decorated with the first four of the Eight Buddhist Emblems, and the remaining four on the outer rim. Both are with the trailing ribbons alternating with lotus blooms on a rose pink ground. Diameter : 7.5cm, Height : 4.5cm.

Dessert bowl 1.
Diameter : 8.5cm, Height : 4.5cm.

Dessert bowl 1.

Dessert bowl 2.
Diameter : 8.5cm, Height : 5cm.

Dessert bowl 2.

Dessert bowl 3.
Diameter : 8.5cm, Height : 4.5cm.

Dessert bowl 3.

Dessert bowl 4.
Diameter : 9cm, Height : 5cm.

Dessert bowl 4

The four dessert bowls above are in ogee-shaped, with high rounded sides, everted gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rims and high straight rose pink foot rings. The exteriors decorated on a white ground with a flying phoenix on one side and a luxuriant peony spray on the other. The inside wells featuring a pink and white peony bloom and leaves. The inner rims are decorated with the first four of the Eight Buddhist Emblems, and the remaining four on the outer rims. Both are with the trailing ribbons alternating with lotus blooms on a rose pink ground.

Dessert bowl 1.
Diameter : 9cm, Height : 5cm.

Dessert bowl 1.

Dessert bowl 2.
Diameter : 11cm, Height : 5.5cm.

Dessert bowl 2.

Above are two ogee-shaped dessert bowls, with high rounded sides, and everted gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rims and high straight white-glazed foot rings. The exteriors decorated on a white ground with a flying phoenix on the side and a peony spray on the other. The inside wells featuring a squarish peony bloom and leaves. The inner and outer rims each filled with four of the Eight Buddhist Emblems with trailing ribbons alternating with lotus blooms on a white ground.

Teacup 1.

Teacup 2.

Above are two conical teacups with everted gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rims and high straight white-glazed foot rings. The exteriors decorated on a pale lime green ground with peony spray. The inside wells featuring a crane with wings outspread. The inner rims each filled with four of the Eight Buddhist Emblems with trailing ribbons alternating with lotus blooms on a white ground, and the outer rims with the remain four of the Eight Buddhist Emblems with trailing ribbons alternating with lotus blooms on a pink ground. Diameter : 8.5cm, Height : 5cm.

Dessert bowl 1.
Diameter : 9cm, Height : 5cm.

Dessert bowl 1.

Dessert bowl 2.
Diameter : 9cm, Height : 5cm.

Dessert bowl 2.

Dessert bowl 3.
Diameter : 10.5cm, Height : 5cm.

Dessert bowl 3.

Dessert bowl 4.
Diameter : 10cm, Height : 5cm.

Dessert bowl 4.

Above are four dessert bowls with high curved fluted cavetti, gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rims and low straight foot rings. The exteriors decorated with scattered sprigs of the flowers of the four seasons:- peony (spring), lotus (summer), chrysanthemum (autumn) and plum blossom (winter), and insects on a white ground. The inside wells featuring a pink and white peony bloom and leaves.

Dessert bowl with base 1.

Dessert bowl with base 2.

Above are another two dessert bowls with high curved fluted cavetti, gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rims and low straight foot rings. The exteriors decorated with scattered sprigs of the flowers of the four seasons:- peony (spring), lotus (summer), chrysanthemum (autumn) and plum blossom (winter), and insects on a white ground. The inside wells featuring a pink and white peony bloom and leaves. These pair are with a nice round base which decorated with the Buddhist Emblems. (Bowls) Diameter : 11cm, Height : 5cm, (Bases) Diameter : 11cm, Height : 2.5cm.

Serving bowl.

Above is a serving bowl with shallow rounded side, gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rim and low straight foot ring. The exterior is decorated with scattered sprigs of the flowers of the four seasons:- peony (spring), lotus (summer), chrysanthemum (autumn) and plum blossom (winter), and insects on a white ground. The inside well featuring a pink and white peony bloom and leaves. Diameter : 16cm, Height : 6cm.

Serving bowl.

Above is a serving bowl with shallow rounded side, gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rim and low straight foot ring. The exterior is decorated with several kinds of flowers in the wheel motifs. The inside well featuring a pink and white peony bloom and leaves. Diameter : 16cm, Height : 7cm.

Teacup 1.
Diameter : 6cm, Height : 3.5cm.

Teacup 1.

Teacup 2.
Diameter : 6.5cm, Height : 3.5cm.

Teacup 2.

Above are two conical teacups with everted gilt-edged chrysanthemum-shaped rims and high straight foot rings. The exteriors decorated on a white ground with peony spray. The inside wells featuring a peony bloom with leaves. The inner and outer rims each filled with four of the Eight Buddhist Emblems with trailing ribbons alternating with lotus bloom.

Japanese Trade (Kakiemon) Wares

In the mid 17th century, persistent civil wars in China prevented almost any ceramic production. To counter the failure of Chinese potteries to deliver goods for export, the Dutch East India Company (VOC) encouraged the fledgling porcelain industry in Japan to produce ceramics for the countries the Dutch supplied, which largely resembled those formally made in Jingdezhen, China, but adding their own flair and colour. (Later, in the 18th century, encouraged by a new export-orientated court, China returned to the export market with new kinds of porcelains, which included, ironically, features borrowed from the Japanese.) The porcelain produced in Arita for Southeast Asia was of three types : imitations of Chinese green ware during the early Ming Dynasty, imitations of blue and white Wanli-style porcelain from Jingdezhen, mostly for Holland, and blue and white and polychrome porcelain in varied styles, some of which was exported.

Old family collections of porcelain in Peranakan Chinese homes in Penang, Melaka and Singapore invariably contain a number of pieces of porcelain manufactured in Arita, Japan, in the 18th and 19th centuries. These include both under glaze blue and white wares and polychrome enamelled wares. Shapes range from bowls and plates to teapots and kamcheng.

Often called Kakiemon wares after a Japanese potter, Sakaida Kakiemon, who worked at Arita in the 17th century and was noted for his simple and elegant style of decoration, the line of Japanese polychrome enamel wares that developed, called Arita wares, were almost always painted on a white ground and were characterised by delicate and simple motifs. Most of the bodies are smooth, dense and opaque, but some are thin and translucent with a grayish tinge.

To the uninitiated, it is easy to confuse white background Nyonya wares and white background Kakiemon-style wares. Not only are the potting techniques similar but also the decorative designs : phoenixes and other birds set amongst peony blossoms, the hallmark of Nyonya ware, predominate, although there are pieces featuring birds and insects amidst sprigs of flowering and fruiting plants. To add to the confusion, many of these Japanese wares are stamped with Chinese seal-script marks or Chinese provenance. Others are unmarked.

Although the designs on Kakiemon-style wares are Chinese, and clearly suited to Peranakan taste, the technique of painting is quite Japanese in expression. The polychrome enamels are more transparent and the outlines of motifs barely delineated, in the style of true Kakiemon wares, compared with the opaque and painterly style found on Nyonya wares. The Kakiemon enamels are soft and fluid except for the thick, dark, opaque Japanese iron red enamel. Moreover, there is no shading by mixing white enamel with other polychrome gazes in the style found on, say, the peony blossoms in Nyonya wares. Generally, too, the brushwork is more spontaneous and lively, more impressionistic and individualistic than the detailed, naturalistic and representational styles employed on Nyonya ware by the artists at Jingdezhen. One detraction, however, is the inclination to fill up as much of the background spaces as possible with floral motifs, obviously in imitation of Nyonya ware and done to suite the perceived tastes of Peranakan Chinese clients for busy, crowded designs.

A number of 19th century under glaze blue and white wares decorated with predominantly floral designs or a combination of floral and insect designs were also used by the Peranakan Chinese in Penang, Melaka and Singapore. Decorators in Arita followed Chinese models, initially copying the kraak or panelled patterns that the Jingdezhen potters produced for the Dutch before branching out into independent composition and a distinctive manner of painting.

Dessert bowl 1.

Dessert bowl 2.

Above are the two dessert bowls of the Kakiemon wares. Both the potting profile and the decorative design of these Japanese Kakiemon bowls are similar to those of the white ground bowls made especially at Jingdezhen for the Peranakan Chinese, with the decoration featuring phoenixes perched on rockery among thickets of blossoming peonies. The inside wells featuring a pot of plum blossom. The coloured enamels are, however, softer and more transparent than the opaque and painterly glazes of Nyonya ware and the quality of the potting is finer even though it would also have been mass-produced. Diameter : 9.5cm, Height : 5.5cm.

Serving bowl.

Above is a serving bowl of the Kakiemon wares with the decoration featuring phoenixes perched on rockery among of blossoming peonies. The inside well featuring a pot of plum blossom. Diameter : 14cm, Height : 6cm.