The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of June 6, 2026

Two purple porcelain bowls with wide, flared sides feature a dense ground of repeating white star-shaped motifs. A geometric fret border wraps around each rim, while scrolling vines decorate the circular base. Large pink and white peony blossoms with green leaves extend across the centers on thin branches. The rich plum-colored exterior contrasts with the delicate, detailed enamel painting.

Pair of Bowls with Peony Sprays on Diaper Ground (exterior); Chrysanthemum Sprays (interior)

1736–95

China, Jiangxi Province, Jingdezhen, Qing dynasty

(1644–1911), Qianlong mark and reign (1736–95)
porcelain with famille rose overglaze enamel decoration
Diameter: 15.5 cm (6 1/8 in.); Overall: 7.6 cm (3 in.)
Severance and Greta Millikin Collection 1964.204
Location: 238 Chinese Ceramics

Description

The production of extraordinarily refined Qing imperial wares such as these could have involved the transportation of undecorated, plain porcelains from the imperial kilns in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, to the palace workshops in Beijing, where court painters applied the polychrome enamel decoration. The Qianlong reign mark on the base of the bowl is written with blue enamel over the transparent glaze.
  • John L. Severance [1863–1936], Cleveland, OH, to his relatives Severance and Greta Millikin
    ?–1964
    Severance A. [1895–1985] and Greta [Marguerite Steckerl] Millikin [1903–1989], Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1964–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Catalogue of the Severance and Greta Millikin Collection. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1990. Mentioned: cat. no. 87
  • The Severance and Greta Millikin Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (July 5-September 2, 1990).
  • {{cite web|title=Pair of Bowls with Peony Sprays on Diaper Ground (exterior); Chrysanthemum Sprays (interior)|url=false|author=|year=1736–95|access-date=06 June 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1964.204