Vase; China, Qing Dynasty, 19th century

Vase; China, Qing Dynasty, s. XIX.
Glazed porcelain.
Presents a hair in the deposit and traces of glue on the lip.
Marks on the base.
Measurements: 60,5 x 24 x 24 cm.

Chinese baluster vase made during the Qing dynasty, in the 19th century, decorated with enamels of the pink family. The vase features the motif known as "Hundred Antiques", a complex ornamental composition that brings together a wide array of emblematic forms, including the Eight Treasures, the Four Treasures of the Study, symbols of the Four Refined Arts (music, chess, calligraphy and painting), as well as conventional depictions of ritual vessels, flowers, animals and other auspicious objects, all charged with symbolic meaning.

The pink family is characterized by the use of a vitreous-looking opaque white glaze (bo li bai), based on lead arsenate, which serves as a base for coloring vestments, floral petals or other details. On this base, the colored glazes are mixed with white or applied in superimposed layers, allowing a rich variety of tones, shades and volume effects.

During the 19th century, this technique evolved and began to be called "fencai" (powdered colors), a term used to define the pink family type decoration applied on a white background, while "falangcai" came to designate the pink family applied on colored backgrounds. It is likely that the term "falang" is a Chinese adaptation of the word "foreign", while "cai" simply means "glazes".