Antique/Vintage Porcelain Cat Teapot, Chinese Republic (17022B-ZLK) $130

$130.00

H: 7”  W: 6.5”  D: 3.625” | FREE SHIPPING!

This glazed white porcelain cat teapot with a raised paw, like most vessels in this genre, has a removable head, a long sinuous tail handle and a raised paw as a spout. The hand painted whimsical and colorful design includes a thin ribbon-like blue collar and an impressive dangling ornamental bow with black accents that define the face, ears, head and paws,
.

Description

In China and Japan cats are often portrayed as small-teapots that provide individualized tea servings and better retain heat. White porcelain with a clear glaze was often the preferred pottery form for preparing tea as it was viewed as more elegant. Since Mao (猫), the word for cat, is a homophone for octogenarian, it is a well-known Chinese longevity symbol (shou 壽). Qing dynasty and Chinese-Republic cat-teapots are often portrayed with a raised paw as its spout, a popular motif of a “beckoning cat” like the famous Japanese Maneki Neko widely used in feng shui, especially among Chinese merchants, as a greeting and welcoming gesture to promote and maintain positive energy (chi) and bring good luck and fortune into their store. These cats often have long ribbons (shoudai) around their necks, a homophone symbolizing longevity (shou 壽). They are charming  pouring-vessels that will enrich any space, especially as kitchen accesssories, and their symbolic wishes for a long life and good luck make them appropriate gifts for any occasion such as  birthdays, house warmings and weddings. This has a blank circle seal in the mold on the bottom, and later versions are stamped with “Made in China” and/or red stamped characters of the maker. Its condition is excellent with normal dark dot-like firing imperfections and minor scratches from age and its use. As with all antique teaware, we advise they be used only for decorative purposes.

Additional information

Weight 6 lbs
Dimensions 10 × 10 × 10 in
Place of Origin

China

Period

Antique/Vintage (1910-1980)

Materials and Technique

Porcelain

Dimensions (inches)

Ht: 7” Width: 6.5” Depth: 3.625”

Dimensions (metric)

Ht: 17.78cm Width: 16.51cm Depth: 9.20cm

Condition

Excellent, fine patina demonstrating age and use

Reference Number

17022B-ZLK

Shipping Box Size