Sandbanks Antiques has dated this Chinese Eggshell Porcelain Bowl to the 19th Century.
This piece features the classic "Gua Die Mian Mian" motif, a traditional visual pun representing the wish for "ceaseless generations of descendants."
The exterior is vibrantly painted with fruiting melon vines and fluttering butterflies. The enamels are of superior quality, showing the characteristic "bony" or slightly raised texture of late 19th-century mineral pigments.
The Butterflies: Masterfully detailed with iron-red, cobalt blue, and manganese violet, finished with fine hand-painting that remains remarkably bright.
The Melons: Display delicate stippled transitions from pale yellow to deep rose pink.
The Palette: A sophisticated mix of lime greens, turquoise, and "shrimp-paste", all applied with confident, fluid brushwork.
Weight: 141 grams (Extremely lightweight, "eggshell" quality).
Dimensions: Height: 7 cm | Diameter: 12.2 cm.
Resonates with a clear, sustained, bell-like ring when tapped, confirming total structural integrity and high-fire vitrification.
The base features a deeply recessed, glazed centre surrounded by a neatly finished, unglazed foot rim. The exposed porcelain paste is fine-grained and white, showing a natural "oily" lustre and a faint orange oxidation line where the glaze meets the body—a hallmark of authentic period firing. Faint "chatter marks" from the potter’s wheel are visible under close inspection, confirming the piece was hand-thrown.
The underside bears a six-character Guangxu Mark and Period (Da Qing Guangxu Nian Zhi) in iron-red Kaishu (standard script). The calligraphy is executed with the confidence of a guild-trained imperial-standard artist, with the pigment having naturally settled into the glaze over the past century.
This bowl is a quintessential example of Guangxu Mark and Period porcelain.
The extreme translucency and thinness achievable only with late-Qing high-grade kaolin.
The presence of microscopic iron "pinprick" spots within the glaze, typical of authentic 19th-century production.
Natural, soft thinning of the gold accents and microscopic wear to the foot rim consistent with 120+ years of age.
Hand-applied enamels that sit "on" the glaze rather than the flat, printed appearance found in modern reproductions.
Pristine Condition. No chips, hairline cracks, "star" cracks, or restorations.
A rare survivor of this fragile "eggshell" class of porcelain.
Provenance The G S. May Esquire Private Collection, London. Label Number 621
"A museum-quality survivor of the late Qing Dynasty, combining delicate technical mastery with auspicious imperial symbolism. A must-have for the serious collector of Mark and Period Chinese porcelain."
Sandbanks Antiques has dated this Chinese Eggshell Porcelain Bowl to the 19th Century.
Specialising in antique silver, gold boxes, gold coins and objects de vertu. Rare fine-quality imperial chinese porcelain, jades, cloisonné
You can view the stock and full dealer information on the Sandbanks Antiques Profile Page
Fine & Rare Chinese Famille Rose "Melon and Butterfly" Eggshell Bowl – Guangxu Mark and Period (1875–1908)
