A GILT-DECORATED CORAL-GROUND TEA BOAT, JIAQING MARK AND PERIOD China, 1796-1820. The ingot-shaped tea boat finely painted in gilt to the interior with a central lotus blossom and wan symbol, encircled by four butterflies and scrolling foliage, to the interior sides with lotus, bats, peaches, and scrolling foliage, and to the exterior with lotus scroll and butterflies. The turquoise-ground base with a six-character iron-red seal mark da Qing Jiaqing nianzhi and of the period.

Provenance: From a private collection in Surrey, England.
Condition: Excellent condition with some old wear and firing irregularities as well as little rubbing to enamels and gilt.

Weight: 125.9 g
Dimensions: Length 14.4 cm

With the increasing vogue of consuming loose-leaf teas during the mid-Qing dynasty, an array of new forms were introduced in the imperial porcelain repertoire. Tea boats, also known as tea plates, were small curved vessels used to present tea leaves. It allowed the tea consumer to appreciate the leaves prior to their brew.

The story of loose-leaf tea is shrouded in the mists of ancient times in the Far East, and at least according to Chinese legend, its marvelous appeal as an invigorating beverage was discovered entirely by accident. Chinese legend tells us that the Emperor Shen Nong discovered the exhilarating properties of loose leaf tea in the year 2737 B.C., when he happened to be spending time in the Imperial Garden, and for whatever reason, boiling some water. At that time, a single leaf from an overhanging wild tea tree fell into his hot water, and on a whim, he tasted the resulting beverage. Feeling pleasantly refreshed and stimulated, he researched the properties of the wild tea tree which had provided this refreshment, and discovered that in addition to its pleasant flavor, it also had certain medicinal properties.

Whether this story is true or not, it's certain that tea-drinking and the appeal of tea leaves were first popularized in the general region of Tibet, China, and Northern India. By the time of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the classic age of tea prevailed throughout China, and tea-drinking had become so popular that the beverage was hailed as China's national drink. The reason for the slow global spread of tea-drinking was the country's continuing reluctance to share its discovery with the rest of the world, and the fact that its government enacted laws restricting the sale of tea beyond the country's borders. It was not until the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) that restrictions on the sale of tea were finally lifted, and trade with the Western world began in earnest.

Literature comparison:
Compare a related gilt-decorated coral-ground vase, also with a Jiaqing mark and of the period, in the Qing court collection, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Miscellaneous Enameled Porcelains, Plain Tricolored Porcelains, p. 212, no. 170.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby's Hong Kong, 16 December 2021, lot 5058
Estimate: HKD 200,000 or approx. EUR 25,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare turquoise-ground gilt famille-rose tea boat, Seal mark and period of Jiaqing
Expert remark: Compare the near identical form and iron-red Jiaqing mark against a turquoise ground, the closely related decoration with lotus, bats, and wan symbols, and the similar size (13.4 cm).


嘉慶款和年代珊瑚紅地描金纏枝蓮紋茶船
中國，1796-1820年。元寶形茶船施珊瑚紅釉為地，以金彩繪經典纏枝西番蓮與蝴蝶捧蓮紋樣。底足内施綠松石地釉，礬紅釉“大清嘉慶年製”六字款。

來源：英國薩里郡私人收藏。
品相：品相極佳，有一些磨損和燒製瑕疵，琺瑯和描金輕微摩擦。

重量：125.9克
尺寸：長14.4厘米

茶船，又名“茶托”或“盞托”，亦稱茶托子、茶拓子。其用途以承茶盞防燙手之用，後因其形似舟，所以也稱之為“茶船”或“茶舟”。清代宮廷飲茶之風十分流行，茶品器具異常精緻，完美體現皇家的典儀與審美。此件嘉慶珊瑚紅地描金茶船，即是清中期宮廷茶具中的一種。嘉慶一朝治瓷，以茶具最富盛名，品類繁多，而此器尤為珍善。兩對蝴蝶圍繞著纏枝蓮，象徵著純潔幸福，為皇宮貴冑大婚之用的特品。

文獻比較：
比較一件相近的清宮廷所藏嘉慶款及年代珊瑚地鎏金花瓶，見《故宮博物院藏文物珍品全集‧琺瑯彩‧粉彩》，頁212，編號170。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：香港蘇富比，2021年12月16日，lot 5058
估價：HKD 200,000（相當於今日EUR 25,000）
描述：清嘉慶松綠地描金粉彩仿景泰藍茶船 《大清嘉慶年製》款
專家評論：比較此茶船的形式和綠松石地的礬紅釉“大清嘉慶年製”六字款，以及非常相近的蓮花、蝙蝠、萬字紋等裝飾，還有相似的尺寸(13.4厘米)。