Chinese Famille Rose Porcelain Lidded Box

Extraordinary hand-painted famille rose lidded box, dating from the third quarter of the 19th century, made by the Yong Sheng Porcelain Works in Hong Kong, featuring the coat of arms and motto of the Sobral family. Famille rose porcelain became very popular in the early 18th century. In art history, Chinese porcelain was classified according to its predominant color. Pink was discovered around 1680 by the Leiden scholar Andreas Cassius (1600-1673) and was introduced to China by the Jesuits, who quickly used it for porcelain painting. The designs are highly recognizable thanks to the use of bright rose red for the floral elements and the pinkish glaze that characterizes the overall colors. This lidded box probably dates from the first half of the 19th century, a time when the production of so-called historical porcelain was gaining popularity. The aim was to produce copies of the finest products of previous centuries. Joaquim Inacio da Cruz Sobral (1725-1781) was a Portuguese merchant and was appointed administrator of the Lisbon customs office in 1767. Two years later, he was raised to the peerage by King Pedro I of Portugal and chose a coat of arms featuring a cross composed of four six-pointed stars on a blue background, with the motto Meis Nomen Honor ove (honor my name). During his lifetime, Sobral commissioned dozens of pieces of Chinese porcelain bearing his coat of arms. It was on these pieces that the Yong Sheng factory relied to produce this lidded box in the 19th century.Condition: This lidded box shows the normal signs of wear inherent to an object of this age. Otherwise, this object is in perfect condition.