Seated Chinese God of War in Early Ming Biscuit and Turquoise Blue, Plate, 1911

Plate 198 from Volume II of Gorer and Blacker's Chinese Porcelain and Hard Stones, an original 1911 color plate of a seated figure of the god of war, the head and hair unglazed, with a turquoise blue cape and a violet robe with jeweled belt. Figure of Kuan-ti, the god of war, seated. The head and hair unglazed, the ears (large-lobed) and the moustache in burnt biscuit; the cape falling over the shoulders and under the hair behind is turquoise-blue in color, and the robe of violet is ornamented by a jeweled biscuit belt, with further decoration in biscuit. The book gives it to the Early Ming period and records height 18 inches (45.7 cm); width 11 3/8 inches (28.9 cm). In a private collection.

The plate belongs to Edgar Gorer and J. F. Blacker's Chinese Porcelain and Hard Stones, issued in London by Bernard Quaritch in 1911, a work in two volumes whose two hundred and fifty four color plates were printed to the highest standard the period could reach. The plates are color collotypes, a photographic process that reproduces continuous tone without a visible dot screen, which is why the glazes keep their depth on paper.

The volumes were produced as a record of pieces Gorer handled or admired, and the plates were made with unusual care for the period. A century later they survive as some of the best color images of early twentieth century taste in Chinese ceramics and hard stones.

A sheet of this size frames well at about forty by fifty centimeters and suits a study, a hallway or a dining room where its color can be seen close to.

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

Even age toning. A few small foxing spots in the margin. Slight wear at the bottom left corner. Minor edge wear, shallow nicks along the left.