A Chinese signed porcelain Pagoda design Quinlong Plate. Ref. P/93

Description: A Chinese signed porcelain Pagoda design Quinlong Plate. Ref. P/93
Maker: Quinlong era, Canton, China
Date: 1750-1790
History: Although no porcelain was actually fired in Canton, a number of small studios around Canton led to Canton being a distributing point for blue and white porxcelain, much being exported through the East India Companies back to Europe. This became known as Chinese Export ware, usually needed by the East India ships for ballast. At the same time, tea was often used as a packaging material to stop damage to the porcelain. In this way, the East India companies made a profit on both.
Description: An unusual plate in that it is signed and appears to have been formed over a mold rather than made on a potters wheel. Examine the back and you will see the rather rough pressed finish including a heavy orange-peel glaze with associated grey specks due to the wood firing in a kiln. Personally, I believe this piece is closer to the 1750s era. The signature is one I cannot decipher and the dark blue cobalt colouring indicates a sought-after piece, the darker the blue, the more desirable the piece.  Much of Canton ware is a light grey-blue colour Wikipedia points out In general wares made for export, especially in the early periods, were "mainly strong and rather roughly-finished articles", compared to those for the elite domestic market, to allow for the stresses of transport, and less sophisticated customers. This is a relatively heavy porcelain plate showing a typical pagoda, hills in the background, some houses, tree. The border of lambrequins on the rim is more typical of Nanking pieces than Canton ware which depict rain and cloud variants or parallel bands of diagonal lines but Nanking painting quality is somewhat better than Canton which is usually shows less fine detail.
Condition: Apart from a single chip on the rim, it remains in good condition. Two small glaze cracks are observed, a typical feature of some glazes. The foot-rim is very rough, usually indication an early piece, and the glaze is also rough on the back of the plate
Dimensions: 24 cm in diameter and 2.5cm in height.

 Price: R1200.00

 Please note, I am NOT a qualified archaeologist/antiquarian and the description I have given is based on research of the subject.
This is a genuine antique. Please remember the classification of an 'antique' is that it should be 100 years old, OR MORE. 

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