Kangxi freely written marks

Started by wk, Jul 26, 2016, 04:02:56

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wk

I saw these 2 vases online but didn't buy them yet. An older lady is selling them and she inherited them from her parents who inherited them as well, but you never know.

I know the mark is the last thing to look at, but this one has me puzzled. Most 4 character Kangxi marks without borders are from the Guangxu period, but I read that because Kangxi was a fairly long period it consisted of 3 stages. First fairly bold writing, second loose and freely written, and third precise and tight writing. Would someone in the Guangxu period choose a very loose and sloppy Kangxi mark?

peterp

First, of these two vases, the first (top one) could be export porcelain. Whether it is Qing dynasty would need closer inspection.
The other is just a fancy product of the 20th century, that means it is modern with a classical motif. The shape itself gives it away already. This is not a traditional shape.
The mark is indeed written in a peculiar manner. That item would need closer inspection as to whether it could be made later than Guangxu.

It is not that easy to get a Kangxi item with a reign mark that is of the period. Basically reign marks would only be possible on items from the earlier periods, because it was forbidden to use reign marks in the later Kangxi dynasty, except on imperial porcelain, of course. Then, in the Kangxi reign marks were written with a specific character type, which is different from what you see here.
Further, export porcelain is a completely different manner in many respects. What is valid for domestic porcelain is not always also valid for export porcelain. I think it is more likely to find a pictorial mark or no mark at all on domestic Kangxi porcelain.

wk

I see Peter, thank you very much for the explanation!