A FAMILLE VERTE 'ROMANCE OF THE WESTERN CHAMBER' BASIN, QING DYNASTY China, 1644-1912. Brightly enameled to the interior with a scene from the classic play Romance of the Western Chamber (xixiangji), showing Zhang Sheng seated in a two-wheeled carriage being pushed by an elderly attendant, the maid Hongniang offering a bowl filled with food to the young scholar, and Cui Yingying watching from behind a door with a mischievous look on her face. Provenance: From a private collection in Scotland, United Kingdom. Condition: Excellent condition with minor wear, particularly to enamels, and minimal firing laws. Weight: 2,537 g Dimensions: Diameter 34.3 cm The rim with alternating butterflies within shaped reserves and floral sprays against a dotted ground. The heavily potted body with straight sides rising from a flat base to a slightly flaring broad rim with a circumferential groove near the lip. The unglazed base covered with a brown wash. Romance of the Western Chamber is one of the most famous Chinese dramatic works. It was written by the Yuan dynasty playwright Wang Shifu and set during the Tang dynasty. Known as China's most popular romantic comedy, it is the story of a young couple consummating their love without parental approval, and has been seen both as a 'lover's bible' and 'potentially lethal,' as readers were in danger of pining away under its influence. Auction result comparison: Compare a closely related famille verte basin, of only slightly larger size (40.7 cm diameter), dated to the Kangxi period, at Christie's New York in Marchant: Nine Decades in Chinese Art on 14 September 2017, lot 745, sold for USD 11,250, and another at Sotheby's New York in Chinese Works of Art on 19 March 2013, lot 180, sold for USD 10,000. Note that both basins show similar decoration and shaped reserves to the rim and depict similar court scenes, although the compositions are denser than on the present lot. Compare also a related Kangxi famille verte basin (38.5 cm diameter) with a similarly sparse depiction of a mother and three boys at play at Christie's London in Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on 14 May 2013, lot 270, sold for GBP 12,500. 清代硬彩《西廂記》場景大盤 中國，1644-1912年。明亮的琺瑯彩精美繪《西廂記》中場景，張生坐在雙輪推車上，一位年長的侍從推著他，紅娘端著盛滿食物的碗給年輕書生，崔鶯鶯躲在門後看著，一臉傾慕。 來源：英國蘇格蘭私人收藏 品相：狀況良好，輕微磨損，特別是琺琅釉處，以及輕微燒缺陷。 重量：2,537 克 尺寸：直徑34.3 厘米 拍賣結果比較：一件尺寸稍大的康熙硬彩大盤 (直徑40.7 厘米)， 見紐約佳士得Marchant: Nine Decades in Chinese Art 2017年9月14日 lot 745, 售價USD 11,250, 以及另一件見紐約蘇富比Chinese Works of Art 2013年3月19日 lot 180, 售價USD 10,000。 兩件大盤都有類似圖案場景以及形狀，只是場景佈置比拍品上的更加密集。一件康熙硬彩嬰戲圖大盤 (直徑38.5 厘米) ，見倫敦佳士得Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art 2013年5月14日 lot 270, 售價GBP 12,500。