Chinese Famille Rose Four Seasons Plate, c. 1900

During the 18th century, Europeans provided an eager market for Chinese export porcelain, especially the colorful and fanciful ware known as “famille rose.” Named for a palette of opaque overglaze enamels that favored roses and pinks, famille rose porcelain ware was crafted with the same technical virtuosity as imperial porcelain but designed for Western tastes. This pair of fine porcelain dishes is a beautiful example of famille rose, decorated with pastel enamels in a palette of purple, turquoise, and pink. The center of each plate is decorated with a calm scene of a woman and a young boy in a garden, surrounded by flowering plum branches and lingzhi fungi of immortality. The scene is bordered by an all-over purple fish...

During the 18th century, Europeans provided an eager market for Chinese export porcelain, especially the colorful and fanciful ware known as “famille rose.” Named for a palette of op...

During the 18th century, Europeans provided an eager market for Chinese export porcelain, especially the colorful and fanciful ware known as “famille rose.” Named for a palette of opaque overglaze enamels that favored roses and pinks, famille rose porcelain ware was crafted with the same technical virtuosity as imperial porcelain but designed for Western tastes. This famille rose bowl...

During the 18th century, Europeans provided an eager market for Chinese export porcelain, especially the colorful and fanciful ware known as “famille rose.” Named for a palette of op...