A pair of Chinese Dowager Empress bowls

A pair of Chinese Dowager Empress bowls, painted in overglaze grisaille with blossoming branches, bulbous plants, hops and ruyi fungus on a bright yellow ground, three characters for Daya Zhai (Studio of Great Elegance) next to a cartouche containing two dragons pursuing a flaming pearl with the words tiandi yijia chun (Heaven and Earth harmonious as one family), a four character mark to the base for yongqing changchun (Enduring Spring eternally celebrated), 19th century, 14cm. (2) Cf. M. Wilson, Rare Marks on Chinese Ceramics, front cover and p.40 for a similar example, and also R. Scott, Elegant Form and Harmonious Decoration, p.173.