Chinese Vases, 18th Century

Small couple of Chinese blue and white porcelain vases. Small in size, these vases make up a decorative and charming set. The decoration that embellishes them is performed with blue cobalt pigment on the white porcelain; the motives are painted by hand and make up a symmetrical set. Both vases are painted with the same decoration so it seems that the patterns on each one are reflected in the other and viceversa. This feature turns these vases into an inseparable set that joins its high beauty with a wonderful condition. The porcelain is quite well preserved and shows no hairlines or dents, being as glossy and luminous as the first day.At the base of both pieces we can see the Qianlong mark, painted by hand under the porcelain glaze. This mark corresponds to Qianlong Emperors reign. He was the sixth emperor of the Qing Dynasty and ruled over China from 1725 to 1796. He abdicated in favor of his son, the Jiaqing Emperor, in order not to reign longer than his grandfather, the Kangxi Emperor. Both pieces bases show also the furnace mark, that is, a slightly brownish tone that stains the porcelain during the artisanal firing process.The decoration of this set boasts a great freedom of execution, something that reveals a talented artist. Performed with cobalt blue pigment on the white porcelain, each vase bears a image of three big birds (probably cranes) flying on a sky decorated with curve shapes and dots that seem to depict clouds. The bases are painted with a series of identical curved motives crowned by perpendicular short straight lines that could evoke a hilly landscape or maybe sea waves.Elegant and delicate, these two vases make up a lovely set that any collector of antique Chinese porcelain would be proud to own.Measurements: Width: 70 mm. Height: 152 y 150 mm.