Pair of Chinese Export Blue and White Porcelain Garden Seats

20th Century

A pair of Chinese export blue and white porcelain garden seats of hexagonal barrel form with gently waisted sides, decorated in underglaze cobalt blue on a white ground. The central register is painted with scrolling lotus vines issuing large blossoms and leafy tendrils, framed above and below by bands of raised bosses imitating metal rivets, a characteristic feature of traditional porcelain garden seats. The upper register is decorated with a band of stylized ruyi-head motifs beneath the rim, while the lower register is adorned with lotus sprays above a double-line border.

The hexagonal top is centered with a cluster of four plum blossoms surrounded by scrolling foliage, with a square central opening. The center of each plum blossom is pierced with an oval ventilation aperture, forming the traditional four-hole ventilated arrangement. Each side of the body is further pierced with circular cash-form openings, serving both decorative and functional purposes.

Height: 18 in. (45.7 cm). Diameter: 12 in. (30.5 cm).