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In the Chinese Porcelain Olympics . . . Rose Medallion wins the gold

By On Deck Staff

With broadcasts of the Olympics coming out of China this month, all things Chinese will be receiving greater notice than usual, including what’s on the antiques market. After all, that’s where the very best Chinese wares can be found for sale in this country today.
Browsers in antique shops will discover that there really was a time, some time ago, when items made in China represented the very pinnacle of good taste, highly respected for their artistry and the quality of their craftsmanship.
For more than a century and a half, Rose Medallion porcelain was among the most popular of the Chinese export wares, so naturally there is more of it available in the shops. But just because it’s more visible doesn’t mean that people are really seeing it.
This may be because they find it, like many Asian antiques, to be inscrutable – How do I know it’s old? Or good quality? What do the decorations mean?
Rose Medallion is one of the patterns in a group known as the “famille rose,” or “pink family” of Chinese wares exported to the West. It’s a French term, coined by the Jesuit priests who were commissioned by the Vatican in the late 1700s to catalogue items coming out of China.
Led by a Father Jacquemart, they decided to group ceramic wares in families according to the dominant color of their decoration. In the pink family the most popular pattern became Rose Medallion, a design centering around a circle with a flower inside. That flower is not a rose, but a peony. Remember the word “rose” is not the flower, but the French word for pink.
Around the center medallion are four or six panels of decoration called “reserves.” These reserves alternate between those featuring people and those featuring a scene from nature, like birds, branches, insects and butterflies.
In all, the Rose Medallion design is an allegory of Harmony, an important Chinese ideal. People are depicted at play, having tea or conversing. Nature is peaceful, serene, flourishing and beautiful.
Also in the pink family are porcelain with dominantly pink decoration featuring only people in long robes. These pieces are classified as Rose Mandarin, after the old Chinese educated class. Pieces that are not Rose Medallion or Rose Mandarin, but still have dominantly pink decoration are classified as Rose Canton, and referred to by descriptive pattern names, like “Thousand Flowers” or “Birds and Butterflies.”
The Chinese exported pink wares to the West in part because they had never known the color pink until they had contact with Western culture. In fact, the Chinese word for pink translates as “foreign color.”
The Chinese exported famille rose pieces from around 1780 to 1940. It is still being (re)produced today. Just about all the pieces you find in most antique shops today were made between 1840 and 1940. Pieces made after 1891 will be marked “China,” and often “Made in China” after 1921.
Those early 20th Century pieces will be bargains, and quite decorative. But collectors will pay more for the mid-to late-19th Century (middle period) pieces. Notice the painstaking hand painting, the density and complexity of the scenes, and little details, like maybe thin strands of gold in a woman’s hair or head dress, or a butterfly border.
Appraisals: Large pieces, like basins, chargers, tall vases, and jardinieres from the middle period can average in price from $500 to $1,500. Otherwise: cups and saucers, $50; plates, $100-$250; platters$200-$450. Late period 20th Century pieces will often be less than half middle period prices.
You’ll be very proud of yourself when you begin to crack the mystery of this wonderful ware and appreciate the work and artistry it represents.
Arthur Schwerdt is the author of “The Antique Story Book: Finding the Real Value of Old Things,” and co-owner of The August Farmhouse Antiques on Route 9 in Swainton. Send your comments or appraisal requests (with photo) to aschwerdt@cmcherald.com.

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