19th-century Blue-and-white Painted Earthenware Opium Pipe Holder - Blo24opi001
Antique Chinese porcelain pipe holder, blue-and-white decoration, bronze mount, apocryphal Chenghua mark, 19th century
Rare opium pipe holder made of white crackled Chinese porcelain, globular in shape, resting on a slightly flattened base, with a blue underglaze painted decoration.The body is adorned with a Chinese landscape motif painted in shades of blue, featuring traditional scenes with vegetation, rocks, and buildings, in a style characteristic of Chinese porcelain painting. The design, featuring two figures and deliberately understated, stands out against an ivory-white background.
The upper part is fitted with a patinated bronze lid, adorned with relief motifs of plants and foliage. At its center is a circular element forming the recess designed to hold the pipe. An elegantly curved metal side handle, ending in a decorative scroll motif, completes the piece. The lid’s stopper still features its pipe cleaner, which is also made of bronze; note the object’s intended use.
Mark on the baseThe reverse bears a six-character Chinese mark in blue underglaze, arranged in three lines:
大明
成化
年製
that is:
大明成化年製 — Da Ming Chenghua nian zhi
“Made during the reign of Chenghua of the Great Ming.”
This mark refers to the reign of Emperor Chenghua (1465–1487) of the Ming Dynasty. However, this is an apocryphal reign mark, a practice that was extremely common on 19th-century Chinese porcelain. The presence of this mark alone does not, therefore, allow the object to be dated to the Ming period. The Palace Museum in Beijing, in particular, holds Qing dynasty porcelain pieces bearing this same mark, imitating the Chenghua style.
The object’s form, its crackled glaze, the quality of the blue-and-white decoration, and the metal mount all point to a later production, likely from the second half of the 19th century.A particularly decorative Chinese curio, combining porcelain with traditional decoration, a beautiful patina of age, and an intricately crafted metal mount.
Period: second half of the 19th century, circa 1860–1900
Origin: China
Material: glazed porcelain, underglaze blue decoration, patinated metal mount
Mark: 大明成化年製, apocryphal Chenghua mark
Dimensions: approximately 11 × 11 cm, excluding the handle
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Period: 19th century
Style: Asian art
Condition: Condition of use
Material: Porcelain
Height: 11 cm
Reference (ID): 1830370
Availability: In stock
