A pair of famille verte figures of recumbent boys
彩繪側臥童子像一對

Kangxi period, 1662–1722, China
清康熙 1662-1722 中國

Length: 23 cm, 9.1 inches
長23釐米

The figures lie back supported by drum shaped pillows – each with the left knee bent up and the right arm tucked behind the head. One figure holds a piped musical instrument in the left hand, while the other holds a lotus stem – the leaf billowing out, above the body, in the form of a headrest. The boys’ shaven heads retain a tear shaped tuft of hair above each forehead, and their faces bear half smiles – the white glaze enlivened by the red of their lips. They wear brightly enamelled yellow coats decorated with clouds and iron red phoenix medallions – the baggy trousers with prunus branches on a white ground.

These models are unrecorded but carry all the characteristics that one associates with famille verte porcelain figures.

Provenance

Thermoluminescence test sample nos. p205j25 and p205j24 confirm this dating.

Similar Examples

Mounted Oriental Porcelain, The J Paul Getty Museum, California, 1982 – colour plate 7. This group contains a standing boy very much in the style of the recumbent figures – both in dress and decoration.