Chinese
Two Rice Bowls with Bats and Peaches, 1723-1735
"Famille rose" style enamels on white glazed porcelain, 6.8 x 14.4 cm (2 11/16 x 5 11/16 in.)
This Chinese rice bowl from the early 18th century is made of white porcelain glazed with a polychrome scene of flora and fauna. The bowl has been broken and repaired. It has a simple tapering shape with a wide lip and narrow foot. The exterior scene shows a small orange flying bat approaching a sprig of peach flowers. Two large pieces of pink and green, ripe fruit hang from a thin branch with small green or blue/green leaves. The branch continues into the interior of the bowl, showing three more orange bats hovering around its distal end with blue-green emergent leaves and delicate pink flowers and buds. The bottom of the foot of the bowl has an inscription in blue writing: Ta Ch'ing Yung-cheng nien chih.
Yellow Room
Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.