China, 1644-1912. Comprising well potted and finely decorated tiny vases of baluster, pear, double gourd, and beaker form, a snuff bottle, and two metal-mounted sprinklers, each painted in shades of cobalt-blue with a variety of motifs like floral sprays, insects and birds, and figures in a landscape, one beaker vase further decorated with gilt and iron-red. (15)

Provenance: Dutch trade.
Condition: Minor wear with firing irregularities including glaze recesses, dark spots, and pitting. Chips, tiny nicks, fritting on the edges, minor losses, scratches, flaking, few hairlines. Overall good original condition.

Weight: 790 g (total)
Dimensions: Height 11.7 cm (tallest), 5.8 cm (shortest)

Expert's note: In the late 17th and early 18th centuries, miniature versions of Chinese blue-and-white porcelain forms were highly prized among collectors. Some of these miniatures would even be placed in ornate 'porcelain cabinets', alongside larger ceramics. An example of such a display can be viewed at the Kunstmuseum Den Haag (formerly the Gemeentemuseum, The Hague) where an elaborate 18th-century dollhouse contains its own miniature 'porcelain room'.