Pair of 19th Century Chinese Watercolor Ancestor Portraits

4 Chinese large watercolor paintings of Court and Buddhist scenes in ebonized frames (19th cent). (PRICED EACH)

Set of 3 Asian Chinese (18/19th Cent) watercolor portraits each with 2 elaborately costumed figures in gilt trimmed frames.

English Victorian maple framed watercolor painting portrait of 19th Century man (Related Item: 054174).  

Set of 8 Asian Chinese (19th century) gouache paintings of traditionally clad figures framed in modern gilt faux bamboo frames.

Late 19th Century French Victorian oval miniature watercolor on vellum portrait of a woman with a light blue dress in an ebonized frame.  

Set of 4 Asian Chinese style (19th Cent) vertical wall panels of watercolor landscape scenes on paper within silver faux bamboo frames.

A nice pair of Chinese ancestor family group portraits, 19th century, on paper, framed in teak frames under glass. Twelve characters total in per...

An impressively sized 19th century Chinese Qing dynasty ancestral portrait painting of a senior official of the first rank in bamboo frame with silk ...

A Chinese 'Ancestor Portrait' oil on canvas laid down on board, depicting a seated dignitary. The Chinese characters identify the artist at Giuseppe Castiglione...

A Chinese Qing Dynasty period painting from the 19th century of an ancestor group portrait in custom frame. Created in China during the Qing Dynasty, this vertical painting features ...

Believing that the departed continue to hold influence over the lives of the living, many Chinese households honor their ancestors in private family rituals, invoking their spirits for long life, health, and prosperity. Commemorative portraits, which came into vogue in the late Ming and Qing dynasties, were commissioned specifically for ancestor worship and were believed to house the spirits of the deceased. When properly cared for, one's ancestors were believed to be a powerful source of honor, protection, and good luck. This pair of ancestor portraits was hand-painted in the late-19th century and beautifully depicts a Qing-dynasty couple. While some ancestral portraits offer a more stylized representation of one's ancestors, this particular pair is painted with incredible realism and life-like expressions. Rather than depict the pair in a regal hall wearing elaborate finery, the couple is shown in a quiet home environment, seated at either end of a square tea table. Their surroundings are minimal, practically undecorated, and they wear simple, matching blue silk robes. Two young children stand beside them, each trying to capture the attention of their grandparent. We love the painting's close attention to detail and the glimpse it offers of Qing-dynasty interiors - from the carved apron of the marble-top table to the red silk lotus slippers...

Chinese ancestor portrait of a Mandarin Dignitary. Antique tempera on paper painting of a Mandarin Dignitary wearing a red court dress and s...