Stemcup thumbnail 1
Stemcup thumbnail 2
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Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
China, Room 44, The T.T. Tsui Gallery

Stemcup

1465-1487 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This porcelain wine cup is painted with a technique known as doucai (literally: 'contrasting colours'), particularly popular during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). The contours of the drawing were painted in underglaze blue and then filled with coloured overglaze enamels, which required a second firing.

The vessels produced at the imperial kilns of Jingdezhen during the Chenghua reign (1465-1487) were particularly fine, and were imitated in subsequent periods keeping the earlier Chenghua mark.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Porcelain decorated in underglaze blue and overglaze polychrome enamels
Brief description
Porcelain wine cup painted in doucai style with birds and branches, China, Ming dynasty, Chenghua mark and period (1465-1487)
Physical description
Porcelain wine cup, painted on the outside in underglaze blue and overglaze polychrome enamels in doucai style with two branches with large leaves and fruit and two pairs of birds; a six-character mark in underglaze blue is inside the foot.
Dimensions
  • From register (3 in.) height: 7.62cm
Styles
Marks and inscriptions
'Da Ming Chenghua nian zhi' in the inside of the foot
Translation
Made during the Chenghua reign of the Ming
Gallery label
Porcelain wine cup Decorated with doucai colours, that appear to have discoloured in a fire. Chenghua reign period mark (1465-1487) Ming dynasty(June 1991)
Object history
From register; sold to Messrs Bluett at Sotheby's, May 11th 1954, lot 17, the 'Property of a Gentleman' (known to be a Mr Collingwood, who acquired it from the Oliphant collection in Scotland). The stem-cup has been in a fire, which has discoloured the enamels and the unglazed edge of the foot ring.
Subjects depicted
Summary
This porcelain wine cup is painted with a technique known as doucai (literally: 'contrasting colours'), particularly popular during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644). The contours of the drawing were painted in underglaze blue and then filled with coloured overglaze enamels, which required a second firing.

The vessels produced at the imperial kilns of Jingdezhen during the Chenghua reign (1465-1487) were particularly fine, and were imitated in subsequent periods keeping the earlier Chenghua mark.
Collection
Accession number
C.34-1954

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Record createdOctober 2, 2008
Record URL
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