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Identify characters

by Patricia
(Tamworth NSW Australia)

Urn approx. 60cm tall front

Urn approx. 60cm tall front

I have a large ceramic urn that I received from my great-aunt's estate approximately 25 years ago. I have not been able to have the character marks on the base identified. Your assistance would be appreciated as I do not know if the piece is valuable or not.
My great-aunt was married to a Count from Austria and had quite a valuable collection of antiques etc, so I would like to confirm if this piece is an antique or a more modern piece.
Thank you for your time.

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Thank you.
by: Patricia

Thank you Peter, I appreciate your comment. I don't know of any collectors or anywhere else to take the urn unfortunately.
Fencai vase
by: peter

Hello,
The mark is a Kangxi reign mark (see Ming-Qing emperors in the left menu). However, the Chinese often used marks of earlier reigns, so we cannot rely on the mark for age evaluation.
Based on these pictures it cannot be excluded that it is of the period, but the whiteness of the glaze and decoration in general it is more likely from the late Qing dynasty. Some Chinese call the Guangxu reign "little Kangxi", because it was a period when the porcelain industry was revived and flourished for decades. They copied many designs of earlier periods, including those of the Kangxi period.
With floral motifs it is a bit difficult to decide whether it is Kangxi or Guangxu without handling the actual item. The likelihood that it is a Guangxu item is much higher. I would recommend to show this to a collector or dealer, who has experience with Chinese porcelain, if possible.
The foot and foot rim confirm that it is antique, in my view.

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