A gilt-bronze mounted Chinese porcelain pot-pourri vase, the porcelain Qing dynasty, 18th century, the mounts Louis XV circa 1740

Étude François de Ricqlès, Paris, 11 juin 2001, lot 209.

This pot-pourri vase is similar to a pair illustrated in La Folie d'Artois, Paris, 1988, pp. 194 and 200. Although the vases are very similar in terms of size and decoration, there are slight differences, notably in the covers, which are floral celadon on the Meyer pair and embossed celadon on the present pair.

The composition decorating these vases in floral celadon draws on classic themes from Chinese mythology. A similar vase, also mounted as a pot-pourri, can be seen in the painting by Michel Hubert Descours, Portrait de Marie-Jacqueline Descours dans son intérieur (Robert de Balkany, rue de Varenne, Paris, Replica Shoes 's, Paris, 20 September 2016, lot 15).

The gilt-bronze mount is stylistically very interesting as it bridges the Régence and Louis XV styles. The lower part boasts a base decorated with motifs that were in vogue in the early 18th century, such as lambrequins and cartouches engraved in bronze, while the handles and the upper part with its openwork neck already herald the exuberance of the Rococo style.