Pair of turquoise vases, Qing dynasty, Qianlong

Turquoise-coloured "琉璃" (liuli) glass with carved landscapes. The pair is almost identical, with a faceted octagonal shape, a flattened globular body on a raised foot and under a high funnel neck that ends straight. The decoration is located on the belly and is carved. It depicts, on the one hand, a natural landscape with mountains, lakes, forests and some buildings, and on the other, a long inscription filled in with pigment. In very good condition.

This form first appeared in the Yongzheng dynasty. During the Qianlong dynasty, they were made in glass of different colours and almost identical. After the Jiaqing they were made, but the shape is not standardized and the quality is lower.

On both there is a carved mark on the base "乾隆年制" (Qiánlóng nián zhì) from the Qianlong period (1736 - 1795). On the outside is carved the following poem, which overall is as follows: "硕轴弗葳而自蕆，层层峦岫锁烟光。问谁于此乐饥者，不是逢萌定薛方。 过雨春山新水生，飞泉落蛱启淙鸣。听来颇契东坡句，正是大弦和且平。 乾隆辛酉."

Provenance: Important collection of Tommy Lam, Hong Kong, from 1980.

References: The Palace Museum "雍正款蓝色透明玻璃八棱瓶". Reference number: 00106261

Height: 19.2 cm; Base diameter: 5.8 cm; Mouth diameter: 2.7 cm; Weight: 1000 g