Group of Three Ming Horsemen on Pierced Stands, Gorer Plate 1911

Printed in color in London in 1911 for Bernard Quaritch, this original antique plate shows a group of three horsemen on pierced stands, two mounted and one dismounted beside a horse loaded with baggage. One rider in a flowered green coat carries arrow and bow cases, the other wears a pink coat with rosettes; the dismounted man in green leads a black horse laden with baggage. The pierced stands show lozenge trellis on the front. Gorer and Blacker describe all three as Ming period and record them in the collection formed by Richard Bennett; the riders height 8 3/8 inches (21 cm), width 6 3/4 inches (17 cm), the dismounted group height 6 3/8 inches (16 cm), width 6 3/8 inches (16 cm).

This is one of the two hundred and fifty four color plates in Chinese Porcelain and Hard Stones, published in London by Bernard Quaritch in 1911 for Edgar Gorer and J. F. Blacker. The piece was photographed and the plate printed in color, so the glaze, the palette and the modeling of the original are carried over directly rather than interpreted by a draftsman. Each plate faced a page of description in English and French. The plates are color collotypes, and the book records that it was produced and printed by the Menpes Printing and Engraving Company of London and Watford.

Edgar Gorer (1872 to 1915) was a London dealer in Chinese art. He traded as S. Gorer and Son from 170 New Bond Street, opened a shop at 500 Fifth Avenue in New York, and sold to Sir William Lever, later Lord Leverhulme. He was lost on 7 May 1915 when the Lusitania was torpedoed.

Even age toning. Handling soiling along the right edge. A few small foxing spots in the margin. Slight wear at the bottom left and top left corners. Minor edge wear, shallow nicks along the left. Several larger brown marks.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.