Famille Verte Tea Caddy

[Mat]

Hi again,
I have this tea caddy. It is 13 cm high. Do you think it has some age or is it a new imitation?
Thank you,
Mat

[Stan]

Hi Mat, I would think that this is a later made tea caddy, the earlier ones, 19th century have unglazed tops, I have a couple of tea caddies that have tops like yours but unglazed, notice where the lid touches the jar how it is raised, this would have been the area that the glaze would have been removed before firing, on this it looks like they tried to copy the older ones by raising it up and the decoration for a famille verte is not like any that I have seen on antique porcelain, the colors are the same but the decoration looks much later in my opinion.

[peterp]

Is the bottom glazed? If it is, then it is most likely later. If the bottom is glazed, usually there would be a foot rim, if it is unglazed, then there is none.
Could you upload a close-up picture showing the parallel lines depicting water, below the stalk of the lotus flowers (in the picture showing the bottom). It should be really close, partial, so that the strokes are clearly visible.

[Mat]

Thank you both for your replies! To your question, the bottom is unglazed. Here are some detail photos of the painting and the enamels. What do you think? Also there is a small restoration on the rim of the opening.

[Mat]

More photos...

[Mat]

And some more...

[Mat]

And the last one!

[peterp]

Thanks Mat. I was checking whether the black lines were printed, however they seem to be hand-painted.
You did not answer my question regarding whether or not the bottom is glazed. It is difficult to make out from the pictures if it is... if it is not, this item is 20th century, because in that case the consistency of the clay would be too fine for earlier. If it is glazed, it is most likely also 20th century, because items with an unglazed rim area around a glazed flat bottom usually are from the last century. The colors and glaze used look as if there was some age, but it is difficult to tell from when exactly. Due to the reasons outlined above, I would think that this could be vintage, but it is not an antique. My personal view.

[Mat]

Thank you Peter, I answered in the fourth reply, but maybe that got lost in all the other photo posts... The bottom is unglazed. Yes, the clay is really more fine than what I have seen on 18th/19th c porcelain. So it is vintage, then!