A Rare Kangxi Miniature Tea Canister and Cover

A Rare Kangxi Miniature Tea Canister and Cover c.1690-1710. The rectangular form has a recessed base with a two character mark that can be read as rough-cast jade  (The New and Revised Handbook of Marks on Chinese Porcelain. Gerald Davison, 2010. ISBN 978-0-9564518-0-4. Page 54, mark 256). The panels are painted with flowering plants, lotus rising from a pool will arrow head plants, Chrysanthemum, prunus and another flowering plant.  The top of the cover is painted with a Lingzhi Fungus (associated with longevity and immortality). This form of tea canister closely follows European silver of the late 17th and very early 18th century. This simple rectangular shape was the first Chinese export porcelain vessel that was specifically made to store tea. Other Chinese jars and covers might have held tea but this shape was made as a tea canister. In the 1693 inventory of ceramics belonging to Queen Mary II (1662 – 1694), there is a reference to “very fine flatt bottles with cover for tea…”. However, Kangxi porcelain miniatures such as the present example were used for display. 

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