Asianart.com | Associations | Articles | Exhibitions | Galleries

Hi -I am hoping that someone can help me to identify 2 Chinese bowls I 'inherited' with the purchase of an old house many years ago. There are no marks that I can find. The bowls have a bright yellow pattern and are in good condition - no chips or cracks. Do they have any value? How can I tell how old they are (I know they are at least 30 years old, since they were packed away in the basement for that long!) I thought all imports had identifying marks. Thank you for your help.

I've never collected examples of this pattern with the "Long life without bounds" (Wan shou wu jiang) medallions. However, I do have plates and bowls with dragon-phoenix medallions and a similar melon vine scroll on yellow ground, plus a period mark of Guangxu (1875-1908) on the base and another longevity character surrounded by "Five Blessings" (Wufu) bats in the cavetto. That yours is unmarked suggests to me it might have been made later in the Republic Period (1912-1949). Images are provided below of one of my 8" plates.

Best regards,

Bill H.

Hi Bill,

Thank you so much for the information. I didn't know that the designs had so much meaning and were more than just decoration. Any suggestions regarding how could I find out if they have any value? I have several boxes of teapots, bowls, and even a few jade pieces, soapstone carvings, a 'doll' in a little case that looks like a geisha (but I could be WAY off the mark here!), a watercolor or print, and a couple of snuff bottles. I really like a few of the pieces, but the rest have been in boxes taking up space for 25+ years, which is a shame. I would love to sell them and be able to use the money for some much needed projects around the house if they have any value, but I have no idea of where to take them for appraisal. And it's hard to look up information on the marks when they seem incomprehensible. Thank you again for your help!

Liveauctioneers.com and eBay both have search features and are fairly good places to find comparative prices. Just keep in mind that some items indicated to be "sold" by liveauctioneers actually seem to be either items that go unpaid or unannounced reserves that are bid at the end of the sale by the auctioneer, leaving the item to be re-auctioned another time or two in subsequent sales. So search again using the auction title to make sure you have the actual final price from the same auctioneer.

Best regards,

Bill H

Thank you again Bill, for all your help!

Asianart.com | Associations | Articles | Exhibitions | Galleries |