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Square bottle

Photo: Paul Macapia

Square bottle

18th century

This square bottle is a fascinating amalgam of cultural customs, styles, and decoration: manufactured in Japanese porcelain in the shape of a Dutch gin bottle, then painted in Holland using a Japanese decorative style derived from Chinese Ming and Qing examples, which ironically, had probably taken their inspiration from European enamel painting on glass. The decoration depicts a phoenix and hibiscus alternating with a crane in flight above chrysanthemums.
Hard paste porcelain
10 1/4 x 4 1/2 x 4 1/2 in. (26.1 x 11.4 x 11.4 cm)
Gift of Martha and Henry Isaacson
76.99
Photo: Paul Macapia
location
Now on view at the Seattle Art Museum

Resources

Exhibition HistorySeattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, "Porcelain Stories: From China to Europe", February 17, 2000-May 7, 2000 (2/17/2000 - 5/7/2000)
Published ReferencesEmerson, Julie, Jennifer Chen, & Mimi Gardner Gates, "Porcelain Stories, From China to Europe", Seattle Art Museum, 2000, pg. 168

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