Porcelain for Palaces
10th November 2023
Japanese porcelain fit for a king was a feature of the Japanese Works of Art sale at Woolley and Wallis on 16th November.
Among the lots on offer was a 17th century vase and cover identical to others in both Windsor Castle and Hampton Court Palace. In fact, the style of vase is so associated with the Tudor residence that it is known as a ‘Hampton Court’ vase.
“These slender hexagonal vases, decorated in the Kakiemon palette of red, blue, green, yellow and black enamels are surprisingly rare, with most examples being kept in Royal or public collections,” explained Japanese specialist Alexandra Aguilar. “Three and a half centuries ago colour on porcelain was virtually unknown in the Western world, so the bright enamels used in Kakiemon decoration really appealed to European royalty as a statement of opulence.”
Using vases such as these in formal decorative arrangements was a fashion brought to England by William III and Mary Stuart, who created a new fashion for vases mounted on gilt brackets around fireplaces and flanking large paintings. The royal passion for Japanese porcelain continued throughout the 18th century, with George IV creating large displays in Brighton Pavilion. The vase attracted keen bidding and sold for £60,480.
A pair of Arita porcelain models of hens were another feature of the sale, carrying a pre-sale estimate of £3,000-5,000, which was rapidly exceeded to fetch £31,500. Such models were also popular decorative features among Westerners, and an identical model is in the collection at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge.
“Although these objects were made in the late 1600s, both the hens and the vases would still sit well in a modern interior – proving the aesthetic longevity of Japanese taste,” continued Aguilar. “The designs are simple but colourful and beautifully executed. The fact that they have endured in the Royal collections where other objects have been gifted or disposed of over the centuries, shows just how treasured they were and still remain today.”
The Japanese auction also included a massive bronze water cistern that was in the collection of the family of Lady Charlotte Schreiber, whose own collection features prominently in the Victoria and Albert Museum. Standing almost six feet high, it would have been a prominent garden feature and was probably made for a Japanese temple or shrine during the 19th century. It sold for £8,190.
* All prices quoted include buyer's premium.
