Chinese Republic Style Porcelain Vase with Romance of the Three Kingdoms Figures民国风格《三国演义》人物纹瓷瓶
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Original Presentation Script
Here we have a Chinese Republic Style porcelain vase painted with a lively cast from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms — the sort of object that instantly charms collectors because it turns literature, theater, and ceramics into one very animated surface.
The base carries a Daoguang reign mark, reading 'Da Qing Daoguang Nian Zhi,' but this is almost certainly a later honorific or apocryphal mark rather than proof of 19th-century manufacture. That matters enormously. In Chinese ceramics, a prestigious mark can be a historical reference — or a sales pitch.
The vase itself is crisply potted, with a broad rolled mouth and bright famille rose enamels. The figures are named, the palette is cheerful, and the calligraphy gives it narrative energy. But the painting feels commercial rather than sublime, and the glaze and finish are more consistent with mid-20th-century decorative production than with a true Daoguang-period piece.
Condition appears generally decent, with some grime, wear, and rubbing around the foot and minor surface speckling, but no obvious catastrophic damage visible in these photos. The wear is real, though not old enough-looking to rescue the early mark claim.
So: attractive, collectible, but almost certainly not what the reign mark suggests. Authenticity score: 22%. Conservative auction estimate as a later decorative reproduction: $150 to $350. If it were genuinely Republic period, perhaps $800 to $1,500. If truly Daoguang period? That would be an entirely different financial universe — and this vase does not quite live there.
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Item Report
Chinese Republic Style Porcelain Vase with Romance of the Three Kingdoms Figures
民国风格《三国演义》人物纹瓷瓶
By:Unknown
Style:Chinese Republic Style figural famille rose porcelain
Origin:China
Materials:Porcelain, overglaze famille rose enamels, underglaze blue mark
Age:Likely mid to late 20th century, circa 1950-1980
Condition:Good (visible surface wear and firing/handling marks, no major break seen, not professionally examined in hand)
Value:Auction estimate if authentic early 20th century Republic example: $800-$1,500; auction estimate as later decorative reproduction: $150-$350
Maker's Marks / Writing:Blue underglaze six-character mark on base: 大清道光年製, translated 'Made during the Daoguang reign of the Great Qing.' Multiple painted figure names and inscriptions appear around the body, referencing Three Kingdoms-related characters such as Guan Yu (關羽/关羽), Zhang Fei (張飛/张飞), Zhao Yun (趙雲/赵云), Sun Lang (孫郎/孙郎), Jiang Dong Qiao / likely Jiangdong figure reference, and others; inscriptions appear decorative and literary rather than documentary.
Date:2026-03-21 22:46:51.600167
Description:
Tall Chinese porcelain vase of baluster form with broad flared mouth, painted in famille rose enamels with numerous named historical and literary figures from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms tradition, with inscriptions and a blue underglaze apocryphal Daoguang mark on the base.
中国高身瓷瓶，器形近棒槌瓶，口沿外撇较宽，通体以粉彩绘《三国演义》题材人物，并书人物姓名与题识，底有青花矾红式仿款，为“大清道光年制”寄托款。
Curator Questions
Curated by Jade
Assessment:
This appears to be a decorative Chinese figural vase inspired by late Qing/Republic export and domestic wares rather than a genuine Daoguang-period piece. The base mark reads '大清道光年製' ('Made during the Daoguang reign of the Great Qing'), but the mark is almost certainly apocryphal. The enamels are bright and somewhat uniform, the calligraphy and figure drawing are competent but commercial, and the mouth, foot, and overall finish suggest later factory production. Surface wear around the foot is present, but not enough to support an early 19th-century attribution. A word about copies.. Chinese figural porcelain is a field full of later reproductions, revival wares, and workshop pieces carrying earlier reign marks, so caution is essential.
此瓶应为一件受晚清至民国人物瓷影响的装饰性中国瓷瓶，而非真正的道光时期器物。底款为“大清道光年製”，但几乎可以肯定属于后加寄托款。粉彩颜色鲜明且较为统一，人物绘画与题字尚可，但整体更像商业化绘制；口沿、足部和通体烧造质感也更接近后期工厂制作。足缘虽见磨痕与污沁，但不足以支持十九世纪前期道光本朝断代。A word about copies.. 中国人物瓷这一门类中，后仿器、仿古复兴作品以及署早期年款的作坊制品极为常见，因此判断时必须格外谨慎。
Individual Images:
whole vase front
side view of vase
whole vase three-quarter view
reverse of vase
overhead of vase mouth
base of vase with mark
Provenance:
No provenance documentation shown in the images.
Condition:
Good (visible surface wear and firing/handling marks, no major break seen, not professionally examined in hand)
Identification Score: 94%
The form, enamel palette, literary figural decoration, and visible apocryphal six-character reign mark strongly support identification as a Chinese figural famille rose vase in Republic taste, though exact dating within the 20th century remains approximate from photos alone.
从器形、粉彩设色、文学人物装饰以及可见的寄托年款来看，可较有把握地认定为一件民国趣味的人物题材粉彩瓷瓶；但仅凭图片，对其在二十世纪内的具体年代仍只能作大致判断。
Authenticity Score: 22%
The 'Da Qing Daoguang Nian Zhi' mark is not convincing for true Daoguang period manufacture. The glaze surface is smooth and even, the enamels look later and commercially standardized, and the decorative scheme resembles 20th-century decorative production rather than an early 19th-century court or high-grade private kiln object. Because reproductions are common in this category, I must assume later production unless proven otherwise.
“大清道光年製”底款不足以令人信服，不支持其为真正道光本朝器。釉面过于匀净，粉彩发色更像后期标准化商业彩绘，整体装饰布局也更接近二十世纪装饰瓷，而非十九世纪前期官窑或高等级民窑作品。此类器物后仿极多，因此在没有进一步证据前，应以较晚制作为先。
Image Memory Note
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Keywords
Chinese porcelain vase, Republic Style, famille rose, figural vase, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, literary figures, apocryphal mark, Daoguang mark, China
中国瓷瓶, 民国风格, 粉彩, 人物瓶, 三国演义, 文学人物, 寄托款, 道光款, 中国
The report was edited after initial Artmink draft. Original AI draft preserved in Artmink audit history.
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