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I recently purchased this vase at a thrift shop for 3 dollars. It measures just over 6 inches in height, 1 3/4 inch at foot, and just over 1 1/2 inch at rim. It shows signs of age, but I know that there is a flood of copies and fakes floating around. I know virtually nothing about Chinese pottery so I am hoping that someone could lend me a hand on determining what exactly this is. I could not find another vase on the net with this decoration on this shape. It also shows some rust spots, which I have found could be faked as well. I look forward to hearing any comments and would gladly give me description if the photos are insufficient. Thank you

In my opinion, this probably is a late 19th or early 20th century example of a Chinese vase in the "Sweetpea Scroll" motif with double happiness characters. The Sweetpea Scroll is found on a large variety of Chinese export ceramics that fall into the category of "Kitchen Qing" and were sold widely to Overseas Chinese markets in Southeast Asia from the early 19th century onward.

Also in my subjective opinion, the pieces without the Double Happiness characters seem to be older and slightly better in their painting. Herewith is a photo of an early to mid-19th century example of a "Kamcheng" pot, as it is called in "Nonya" markets (Straits Chinese Communities) in Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia. This is one of several I purchased in the 1980's from a peddler in Burma, which country's border extends south to within a few hundred miles of Malaysia.

Best regards,

Bill H.

Thank you Bill for the reply! I'm happy to know what to call this design. The pot you added is wonderful. I agree, the artwork is of higher quality and I really like the lid. Thank you so much for the education. I will be looking for more Kitchen Qing in the future.

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