A PAIR OF LARGE 'ROSE MEDALLION' CANTON PORCELAIN VASES, China, Qing dynasty, late 19th century

h m 65

Of baluster-column form on a celadon ground, it features a rich floral decoration enlivened by butterflies and crickets. The body is divided into two large lobed reserves: one depicts a court scene with sages, attendants, and acolytes, the other a procession of warriors and ladies within a naturalistic landscape with pagodas in the background. On the neck, beneath a band painted with dragons among clouds, two smaller reserves depict ladies and scholars in a tree-filled garden.