Tongzhi mark vase

[calder]

It is 36cm tall, 22cm wide, neck - 13cm diameter, base 15cm diameter
Thoughts
Cheers

[calder]

More pics.

[Qst42know]

Forgive my ignorance but are real Tongzhi marks ever rubber stamped?

[Stan]

Hi Calder, Just when you think you know it all the carpet is pulled out from under my feet, I would think that this would be late 20th century, but then I have seen similar items on Christies that they say are period porcelain so Im not even going to try, other than the colors look like they are chemical colors, and as far as I no marks were stamped clear into the 19th century,

[peterp]

I agree with Stan. The painting style is also unlike the early millefiori decorations. Basically, I this one gives a better impression, quality wise, than those made in the second or third quarter of the 20th century.
But, you should look at the shape too. This is not a classical Qing dynasty shape.

There were few millefiori (or mille fleur) decorations made between the Qianlong and Guangxu reigns, the majority is republic or later. Most of the later ones have different colors and styles, some even show a background.

[peterp]

Many Tongzhi period marks were stamped, but on minyao porcelain only, as far as I know. We do not know for sure if those stamps were using rubber or another substance. Mark stamping seems to have begun widely in the Tongzhi reign.
Seal stamps were/are also made of wood, lacquer, horn, etc., which may cause a similar impression as the one shown. Personally, I believe that stamping with a hard seal could also result in a similar effect, if someone would stamp several marks in a row, without adding seal paste (or color) to the stamp. The edges of the character strokes will appear stronger than the center, in such a case.

With this mark I would not dare say if it was a rubber stamp or not.

[Qst42know]

That seems a difficult task, stamping a less than flat surface with a stamp made of a ridgid material.

Would there be examples of items with the center of the stamp was incomplete then?

[peterp]

The bottom is flat, why should that be a problem? This sort of mark is always on the bottom. And yes, there are many examples of such marks that are incomplete, most likely because they were applied hastily. But it is usually the corners that are faint, not the center. If you would have a look at the mark examples on this site ... :-)

[Qst42know]

Sorry that is a residual of my former trade. As a toolmaker, producing true flat surfaces was an important part of the job. The bottom of any hand thrown vase is far from flat. I don't doubt what you said but I understand how difficult the task would have been.

Thanks PeterP I will look at the examples.

[calder]

Thank you all for your time and input.
Stan you brought a smile to my face.
Cheers