China, 1644-1912. The octalobed teapot with gilt rims, the gilt handle and spout issuing from fierce dragon heads, neatly incised. The body finely painted in stippled enamels with shaped medallions bearing figural scenes as well as flowers and butterflies, divided by borders of scrolling vines and key-fret as well as ruyi-head bands enclosing diapered patterns.

Provenance: Spink & Son, London (old label to base). Marc Labarbe, Commissaire-Priseur, Toulouse, France, 18 June 2016, lot 47, sold for EUR 127,664 as Enamelled Teapot, Qianlong Period. A notable private collector in Kensington, London, United Kingdom, acquired from the above. A copy of the original invoice from Marc Labarbe, Commissaire-Priseur, Toulouse, France, accompanies this lot.
Condition: Excellent condition with some old wear to enamels and gilt, minor manufacturing irregularities, few light scratches, the interior of the cover with minor loss to enamels. The Spink label with significant wear.

Weight: 385.6 g
Dimensions: Width 14.3 cm (handle to spout)

The cover with a gilt knop finial and painted with peony as well as bands of scrolling clouds and lotus. The interior of cover and teapot enameled in monochrome blue. The white-enameled base with a blue four-character mark Qianlong nianzhi within a red phoenix roundel.

Expert’s note: When comparing the present lot directly and closely with its counterpart in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, some minuscule yet distinct characteristics differ. Even though these differences seem minimal, they are clear and present. It therefore is evident that the present lot was made at a later time than its Imperial precursor. The question as to when exactly, however, remains somewhat of a conundrum. Typically, the smaller the differences between two lots, the narrower their dating range. But - needless to say - there are exceptions to this rule, and so a dating of the present lot to the later Qianlong period seems equally possible as to the Republican era. Only a modern copy can be excluded with absolute certainty at this point, simply because the quality of the workmanship overall is just too convincing, at least by the standards of this author.

Literature comparison: Compare a closely related teapot, with a similar four-character Qianlong mark within a phoenix roundel and of the period, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Enamel Ware in the Ming and Ch'ing Dynasties, Taipei, 1999, page 224-225, no. 114. Compare also a closely related teapot with a Qianlong mark, illustrated in Catalogue of the International Exhibition of Chinese Art, 1935-36, Royal Academy of Art London, page 202, no. 2191.

Auction result comparison: Compare a related Beijing enamel scholar’s cup, with a Qianlong mark and of the period, delicately painted and with gilt and incised fittings, at Sotheby’s Hong Kong in Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art on 9 October 2012, lot 3027, sold for HKD 2,300,000.

清代銅胎畫琺瑯開光茶壺
中國，1644-1912年。此茶壺成八瓣花形，整器琺瑯彩裝飾。腹部八面開光繪四季花卉與人物山水圖案，腹身兩側分別裝飾鎏金龍形柄與獸首吞流。琺琅施彩精美，色彩絢麗。

來源：倫敦Spink & Son (底部舊標籤)；法國圖盧斯Marc Labarbe拍賣行2016年6月18日 lot 47, 售價EUR 127,664。 一位英國倫敦知名私人藏家購於上述拍賣行；隨附法國圖盧斯Marc Labarbe原始發票副本。
品相：狀況極佳，琺瑯和鎏金有一些舊時磨損，輕微的製造不規則，輕微劃痕，蓋子內部有輕微的琺瑯缺損。Spink 標籤磨損嚴重。

重量：385.6 克
尺寸：寬 14.3 厘米 (柄至壺嘴)

壺蓋鎏金蓋鈕，繪製富貴牡丹和蓮花。蓋子和茶壺的內部施單色藍色琺瑯。 白色琺瑯底足中央鳳凰紋，内落青花“乾隆年製”款。

專家注釋：如果與臺北故宮博物院内藏品相比較，會發現在一些細節方面有所不同。 儘管這些差異看起來微乎其微，但它們卻是清晰而真實的。 因此，很明顯，這件拍品的製作時間比博物館裏的藏品要晚。 然而，如何斷代仍然是一個難題。 通常，兩個批次之間的差異越小，它們的斷代範圍就越窄。 但是——不用說——這條規則也有例外，因此，現拍品是來自乾隆後期似乎與來自民國時期一樣可能。 在這一點上，只能絕對肯定地排除他是現代成品，因為整體做工的質量實在令人信服，至少以筆者的標準來看是這樣。

文獻比較：一件收藏於臺北故宮博物院的乾隆款茶壺，見Enamel Ware in the Ming and Ch'ing Dynasties, Taipei, 1999, 224-225頁, no. 114.；另一件乾隆款茶壺見Catalogue of the International Exhibition of Chinese Art, 1935-36, Royal Academy of Art London, 202頁, no. 2191。

拍賣結果比較：一件乾隆款與年代的北京琺琅文人杯，琺琅彩，鎏金以及金屬配件，見香港蘇富比Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art 2012年10月 9日 lot 3027, 售價HKD 2,300,000。