Teacup

The cup is complete; a break has been repaired with glue. It is circular in shape. The wall is almost straight, topped by a straight rim with a tapered top. The wall curves at the base towards the flat bottom. It rests on a ring-shaped foot with a bevelled outer rim; the base is free of glaze and stained with sand. It is fitted with an ear-shaped vertical handle, the lower part of which ends in a swollen knob. There is a blue-painted mark below the base, in a double ring: spread over two registers, it consists of various geometric symbols, including a pair resembling A-squares; the decoration is applied by transfer printing and hand-painted in blue underglaze and polychrome overglaze; the printed decoration is blue and the painted decoration is in blue, red and green with gilding; it is of the Fan motif. The painted decoration is on the inner wall and bottom. On the inner wall, it consists of three discs arranged in triangles; they are trimmed with a gold-painted star lattice. The background is lined with a double ring painted blue; it surrounds a flower whose petals are painted gold, and whose core is painted red and green; this decoration is largely faded. The decoration on the outer wall consists of three fans arranged in a triangle below the rim; the radiating blades with rounded tips are painted alternately in blue, green and red, with gold highlights. There’s also a ribbon printed in blue at the base of the outer wall, adorned with leafy stems and flowers in reserve. A plant motif has been painted in red on the outside of the handle. Gilding has been added to the top of the cup rim.