A EXTREMELY RARE CLOISONNE ENAMEL LOTUS-LEAF FORM EWER, 18TH CENTURY

Fire gilt and incised bronze, copper and cloisonnE enamels
China, 18th century

The ewer is naturalistically cast as a lotus flower, with numerous white petals and pinkish tips and their veins finely detailed in varied green, white, red and blue enamels within gilt outlines, with a large lotus leave forming the base, a lotus stem made of bronze forming the handle, a convoluted smaller lotus leave forming the spout, the lid consisting of a lotus pod with a budding lotus flower serving as the knob, and smaller lotus leaves applied to the outer wall of the ewer. The inside with a thick green glaze.
It is interesting to compare the form of the present ewer with metalwork censers of Song dynasty such as the example in the collection of the Nanjing Municipal Museum, which is similarly cast with a lotus pod, lotus flower and leaf all borne on an undulating stem and connected to a long handle.

Shape: Lotus form ewer
Weight: 960 grams
Dimensions: Length 21.3 cm
Condition: Original and unrestored condition with minor bending to knob, stand and lips of ewer and lid, associated losses to enamels
Provenance: Austrian private collection.

Literature comparison: Although lotus-leaf was a popular choice of form during the Qing period, it is very rare to find them in cloisonnE, but more often in other materials such as jade and crystal, for example, a jade lotus leaf-form washer sold at Christie’s New York, 19-20 May 2013, lot 1739.
Auction result comparison: Through Connoisseurs' Eyes - Ephemeral Flowers, Enduring Art. Christies, Hong Kong, 3 June 2015, lot 2916. (for a related cloisonnE washer) Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art. Christies, Hong Kong, 30 May 2018, lot 3040. (for another related cloisonnE washer)

極罕見的十八世紀景泰藍蓮花壺
鎏金銅，銅胎琺琅彩
中國，十八世紀
壺身是以自然形式鑄造成一朵蓮花，蓮瓣白中透粉，尖端深紅色，金色肌理紋在各種綠色、白色、紅色和藍色琺瑯彩中顯得尤爲細緻。一個大荷葉成為基座部，蓮花莖形的鎏金銅形成手柄，壺口是旋繞的小蓮花葉，蓋子是一個蓮蓬，中間可見顔色不同的莲子，一個小小金色蓮蓬突出，成爲蓋鈕。執柄下方是一片小蓮葉，裡面有厚厚的綠釉。
將這個水壺形狀與宋代的金屬香爐比較是很有意思的，例如南京市博物館的收藏品，其中蓮蓬、蓮花和葉子都是用起伏的莖連接到一個長柄。

造型：蓮花形壺
重量：960 克
尺寸：長 21.3 厘米
品相：原始未修復狀態，蓋鈕部位輕微彎曲，支架和壺嘴及邊緣，局部有琺琅彩缺失。
來源： 奧地利私人收藏.

文献比较：在清代，莲叶使用相当广泛，但是却很少出现在景泰蓝器物中，却经常出现于玉器和水晶器物中，比如一个玉雕莲叶笔洗见于Christie’s New York, 19-20 May 2013, lot 1739.
拍卖结果比较：Through Connoisseurs' Eyes - Ephemeral Flowers, Enduring Art. Christies, Hong Kong, 3 June 2015, lot 2916. (相近的景泰蓝笔洗) Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art. Christies, Hong Kong, 30 May 2018, lot 3040. (另一件景泰蓝笔洗)