Description
Pair of Vintage Chinese Hand-Painted Blue & White Floral Porcelain Bottle Vases
A charming matched pair of vintage Chinese blue-and-white porcelain vases, probably dating from the middle to latter part of the 20th century.
Each has a beautifully rounded, almost spherical body rising into a short waisted neck and gently flared trumpet rim. The porcelain is freely hand-painted with large stylised flowers and foliage in varying shades of cobalt blue, from soft washed blue through to wonderfully deep inky indigo.
The decoration is particularly appealing because the two pieces match without being identical. Individual flowers, leaves and brush strokes vary from vase to vase, giving the pair the character and irregularity associated with hand decoration.
The design draws on China’s centuries-old tradition of decorating white porcelain with cobalt-blue floral motifs, but interpreted here in a much looser, more spontaneous 20th-century manner. Large open flowers alternate with dark and pale leaves around the body, while a simple cobalt line defines the foot and the rim.
Both bases are unmarked. Without a reign or factory mark I would not attribute them to a particular kiln or earlier Chinese period; their construction, glaze and decorative style are more consistent with mid/late-20th-century Chinese decorative porcelain.
They work particularly well as a pair. Place them together on a mantelpiece or console, or separate them across a room to repeat the blue-and-white accent. They would also look lovely incorporated into a larger collection of antique and vintage Chinese ceramics.
Height: 12 cm
Maximum diameter: 11 cm
Rim diameter: 4.5cm
Foot diameter: approximately 6 cm
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