A FAMILLE ROSE MODEL OF A PAIR OF QUAILS, QING DYNASTY China, 19^th century. The birds perched side by side, their heads slightly turned towards one another, their wings finely molded and plumage neatly painted in pale shades of blue, green, and black, the eyes detailed with red dots, all supported on an oval base painted in bright enamels with leafy peony sprays against a red-dotted ground, the interior glazed turquoise.

Provenance: A French private estate. Christie's Paris, 8 December 2021, lot 196 (label to base), unsold.
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear and firing irregularities, a shallow minor chip to the top of the base, occasional light scratches.

Weight: 1,338 g (excl. stand) and 1,958 g (incl. stand)
Dimensions: Length 28.5 cm (the model) and 29.5 cm (the stand)

With a well carved and fitted wood stand dating from the same period. (2)

Quails are known for their courage, while the word for quail in Chinese ('an') provides a homophone for the word for peace. Two quails can be read as shuang an, or 'double peace', and thus, these birds appear as a pair on paintings, porcelains, and textiles from as early as the Song dynasty.

Literature comparison:
Compare a related, slightly later porcelain figure of a quail, dated ca. 1910-1930, in the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum, accession number C.36-1962.



清代一對粉彩鵪鶉
中國，十九世紀。鵪鶉一對並排而坐，很親暱地頭對頭，翅膀造型精巧，細節精緻，使用淺藍色、綠色和黑色描繪；眼睛上點綴著紅色的圓點，底座呈橢圓形，紅點為地，飾琺瑯彩綠葉牡丹。底足內綠松石色釉。

來源：法國私人收藏；巴黎佳士得，2021年12月8日，見底部標籤，流拍。
品相：狀況極好，有輕微磨損和燒製不規則，底座頂部有輕微的磕損，局部有輕微劃痕。

重量：不含底座1,338 克，含底座1,958 克
尺寸：長 28.5 厘米(鵪鶉) ，底座29.5 厘米

匹配木製底座，來自同一時期。

在古代“鵪”和“鶉”本是兩種鳥。鵪鶉之“鵪”與安全、安康、安居、安詳之“安”的諧音，因此又具有“事事平安”和“安居樂業”的象徵意義。一對鵪鶉早在宋代就經常出現在繪畫、陶瓷以及織物上。

文獻比較：
比較一件相近的1910-1930年琺瑯彩鵪鶉，收藏於維多利亞與亞伯特博物館，編號C.36-1962。