Large Chinese Cloisonné Tea Cup
€65.88
A cloisonné piece worked in the Beijing palace tradition, the enamel shifting from deep blue to green as light moves across the surface.
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Description
The deep blues and greens of the enamel catch the light differently at each angle, cool and smooth against the palm, the metal framework barely visible beneath the surface.
Cloisonné is one of China’s oldest and most technically demanding decorative arts, practiced in Beijing since at least the Yuan dynasty and brought to its height of refinement under the imperial workshops of the Ming and Qing courts. The technique arrived via the Silk Road from Byzantium and the Middle East, but Chinese craftsmen transformed it into a distinct tradition so closely associated with the palace that finished pieces rarely circulated outside the court.
This cup begins with a hand-shaped copper base. Fine copper wire strips are soldered onto its surface to define each motif, forming the characteristic partitions, the cloisons, that give the technique its name. Each enclosed cell is filled by hand with powdered mineral enamel in vivid, distinct colors. The piece is fired in a kiln, the surface ground flat, and the process repeated several times until the colors are fully saturated and the enamel sits level with the metal. A final layer of gold plating seals the wire framework and sharpens every line of the design.
Specific dimensions and weight have not been listed. Produced in Beijing, China.
The same core process has been used in Beijing workshops for centuries, and the evidence of that labor is visible in every filled cell. This cup works as a daily vessel for tea and as an object that reflects the specific logic of a very old craft.
Additional information
| Couleur | Rouge |
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