Mug
Category
Ceramics
Date
c. 1785
Materials
Porcelain, cobalt, gold, enamel
Measurements
140 mm (Height)
Place of origin
Jingdezhen
Order this imageCollection
Belton House, Lincolnshire
NT 433481
Summary
Two mugs (of slightly different sizes), porcelain, cylindrical with ear-shaped strap handles on one side, made in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi Province, China, Qianlong period (1736–95), c. 1785, decorated in underglaze blue and gold with dense floral and other stylised ornament framing vignettes in overglaze enamels in the famille rose ('pink family') palette depicting landscapes with river or harbour scenery with ships, buildings on the shore and mountains in the distance.
Full description
The particular famille rose enamel colour scheme seen on these mugs, with strong dark hues such as purple, violet, rose and orange, and with some blue and green, was popular in Europe in the late 18th century. It is sometimes known as the ‘Mandarin palette’ (Kerr and Mengoni 2011).
Provenance
Purchased by the National Trust with support from the National Heritage Memorial Fund, 1984.
References
Kerr and Mengoni 2011: Rose Kerr and Luisa E. Mengoni, Chinese Export Ceramics, London, 2011, pp. 36–7, fig. 40