This object is eligible for a Certificate of BADA Provenance
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Qianlong period circa 1750
European Market
Length: 9 inches; 23cm
An extremely rare pair of porcelain figures of reclining maidens each holding a book, decorated in bright famille rose enamels with an iron red dress, the heads separate and nodding, on a leaf shaped base painted with flowers.
This form is rare, with only one other pair being recorded. It appears to be linked in style to a few other pairs of figures of seated maidens with phoenixes or deer.
The ladies appear to be pregnant which is a very unusual depiction in Chinese art. However the books shown here are a literal representation of a Chinese metaphor: reading a book nourishes the growth of ideas in the mind like a child developing in the womb.
References: Cohen & Motley 2008, p100, a pair of seated ladies holding spaniels with phoenixes beside them; Cohen & Cohen 2014B, No 33, a different pair of this same model; Victoria & Albert Museum, London No FE.25&A-1978, a reclining lady with an infant beside her on a similar leaf base; Sargent 2012, No 254, two reclining ladies in a different position without books, with nodding heads, c 1750; Yi-Li Wu (2010) Reproducing Women: Medicine, Metaphor, and Childbirth in Late Imperial China.
Stock number
6672The BADA Standard
- Since 1918, BADA has been the leading association for the antiques and fine art trade
- Members are elected for their knowledge, integrity and quality of stock
- Our clients are protected by BADA’s code of conduct
- Our dealers’ membership is reviewed and renewed annually
- Bada.org is a non-profit site: clients deal directly with members and they pay no hidden fees