Chinese Porcelain Plate Hand-Painted with Mandarin Ducks, Circa 1860

This beautiful mid 19th-century Chinese plate was hand-painted in the Famille Rose style in the  Qing dynasty, circa 1860. The plate depicts two Mandarin ducks swimming on a lotus pond. They look at each other and seem to smile. This is a happy plate with a symbolic message. Mandarin ducks are thought to mate for life. Therefore, in Chinese lore, they represent a happy marriage. In the Qianlong period, this would have been a perfect wedding gift! The plate is finely painted in exquisite polychrome enamels. We see pink shading into lavender pink and blue shading into light blue and turquoise. Highlights of grey, yellow, green, and light brown with gilt are framed by waveforms in bright white. On the border, we see the eight Chinese immortals, some riding wonderful mythical beasts. On the reverse of the plate are three traditional iron-red flower sprays.

Dimensions: diameter 8.75.”             Condition: Excellent