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- Sometimes the central decorations on famille rose wares are surrounded by several intricate concentric diaper and foliate borders [see cover]. The balanced decorations of Yongzheng famille rose wares have their own distinct charm [84-88, xxn]. The Gu Yue Xuan style of the eighteenth century represents the famille rose technique at its highest level.
Nian Xiyao was reportedly influenced by foreign painting style and this can be seen in his work. At first, European designs were copied as novelties for the court, but later some decorations were taken over for the Chinese market.
The doucai wares of the Ming style using overglaze enamel washes in combination with soft outlines in underglaze blue, were more successfully imitated than ever before during the reign of Yongzheng, and in many ways achieved magnificence that equals, if not surpasses, the Ming Chenghua originals [76-78, xxi].
The blue and white made during the reign of Yongzheng is skilfully made but less interesting than Kangxi examples, and displays a taste for archaism both in form and in decoration. Many motifs of lotus scrolls, peonies and other flowers were copied from earlier wares with a varying degree of success. There were also pieces which attempted with considerable success to imitate the underglaze blue colour of Ming blue and white such as the dark flecked blue (heaped and piled effect) of Xuande wares, the silvery blue of Chenghua, and the violet sheen of Jiajing wares.
In 1736 Qianlong ascended the throne and ruled for sixty years, at the end of which he abdicated in accordance with his vow that he would not outreign his grandfather, Kangxi. Qianlong�s reign was the most impressive period of the Qing dynasty, and has often been treated as the most glorious reign in Chinese history. The Manchu empire achieved its maximum and final political importance under him, to such an extent that it aroused the envy of even the most powerful foreign nations who came to visit. However, Qianlong
Qianlong Period (1736-95)
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