A rare Chinese famille rose armorial plate with VOC coat of arms, dated 1728, Yongzheng

Dia.: 23 cm

The arms and motto depicted belong to the Dutch Republic. The letters 'VOC are the cypher of the 'Verenigde Oost Indische Compagnie', the Dutch East India Company. The design has been accurately copied from one side of a silver coin, issued by the Company in 1728 for use in the Far East. Even the ribbed milling of the coin is imitated in the inner rim of the plate.

The service to which this plate belonged was arguably commissioned by the Company to commemorate the successful launch of its new coinage and may possibly have been used by its employees at the Company's different official bases throughout the Far East.

Other pieces from this service include cups and saucers in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (no. 645 & a-1907), in the Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Netherlands (Hong Kong, 1984, no.43), and in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (Le Corbeiller, 1974, no.43); a plate in the Mottahedeh collection (Howard and Ayers, 1978, vol.I, pl. 191); a plate, teapot, cup and saucer at the Musees Royaux d'Art et d'Histoire, Brussels, Belgium (Jorg, 1989, no.36); a teapot without lid in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Netherlands (Lunsingh Scheurleer, 1974, no.267), and a teapot in the Africana Museum, Johannesburg, South Africa (Woodward, 1974, pl.Al). (Op. Cit. The British Museum, Franks.979.+)

Ref.: 
- Christie's, New York, 19 October 2023, lot 134 for an identical example. (sold USD 20.160,00) (link)
- Christie's, London, 13/05/1996, Chinese Art, lot 189 for an identical example. (sold for GBP 27.600) (link)
- Christie's, Amsterdam, 16/04/2002, The Dr. C. Anton Dreesmann Collection, lot 1307 for a nearly identical example. (sold for €56.400) (link)

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