Identifying a Japanesse vase and signature

I found this vase and don't know much about it. It is about 12inches tall and is signed. It is hand painted The signature on the bottom is about 1x1 Any info or help would be very much appreciated

Hey Jeff

Vases especially can be very difficult to properly identify, but, a photograph would be a good start. Be sure you also take a photo of the bottom also, and a close up of the "signature" or makers mark.

Thanks here are some pictures at this link. I can't figure out another way to add them.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/98802593@N05/

Any info would be great, Thanks
Jeff

Jeff
Good job! Photos are nice.

OK, heres what i can say.

First, its Chinese, notJapanese. This is because of the clothing on the subjects, general shape and "chop" on the base.

Second, I agree its hand painted, and done very nicely.

Third, it has the lid which seems to fit.
thats a plus.

Fourth, it seems to be in the general shape of a "Ginger Jar" but more rounded than one might expect.

Fifth, age..ok now I'm on a bit of a limb.
My guess. Perhaps late 18th early 19th century. [ I would appreciate to be stand corrected.]

Sixth, the markings. You would need an Asian native to read this..sorry..but
the key maybe in in the chop.

Finally, until you have a more nailed down
accessment, do not sell it. Value is very very tricky. While this could be an export peice, I would rather doubt it. So this is nice.

You might consider contacting an auction house called Eldreds, in Dennis Massachusetts. They are true experts in Orentalia. I would trust their opinion. I would not send it to them as there is the chance of breakage and insurance would be tricky to access. They probably can tell you a lot just from your good photos.

If you want a guess on value I would be willing to guess. however the ice is getting thinner.

This peice is well worth your efforts to track it down. Please, let me know what you find out.

Thank you so much that is a great start for me. I am at a total loss with this one I will post back if I find out anything. What could be a range of it if it is what you are thinking. From a opinion side of things. Thanks again I will continue to do some research

Jeff

ok, on the value. These differences depend on wholesale v. retail..insurance estimates and markets [ NY v. LA ect]

so..not knowing more about the chop and thus the maker or company that produced it..
my guess..$150 to $350. I sure would love an
analysis on the mark. Bear in mind that very early chinese vases are often without marks altogether, thus making them more desiareable, and valueable, so not so much in this case.
So your in the hundreds not thousands..still not bad.

If you choose, where did you get it ? history can be revealing sometimes.

The chop says: Š£�~”N�», meaning made during years of Emperor Qianlong (or Chien-lung), in reign from 1735 to 1795. Qing Dynasty.

So it might be worth something. However, I have heard that even modern copies copy the whole design, including the chop as part of the overall design (!). You will need to have this assessed properly by an antique expert.

Thank You AK

OK, Jeff I agree with AK. This needs to be accessed by an expert. Looking at a peice in person with hands on is necessary.

You can take my estimate and set it aside.
My gut tells me that this is authentic however it is in almost too good of a condition. If so then you are looking at
$ 2500- $3500.

Tip: you might look at ebay for comps. If you find any then you will know that it has been mass produced.

Thanks Peter and AK, I think I will get it looked at. Even if it is nothing it is worth a try. I did look on ebay and I didn't find anything like it in design or the shape of the jar. It seams most I found have not been as wide in the middle.

I don't want to throw cold water but it is most likely a fake unless you have the paper to go with. Where did you buy it? It is that old and valuable, it would be sold only at a high end reputable specialty antique stores. Chinese are very good at making copies and charge a lot for unsuspecting foreign tourists. Buyer be aware!

Amazinga has good points, the chinese fakes are troubling. However even at high-end Auctions [ I have been to many of them] and fancy-schmacy stores you do not get a certificate of authenticity. These certificates can be fakes too. Provenance is an indicator. We had a vase in our antique store for $ 18.00. A high end dealer came in from NYC and said how nice our celedon vase was [ he never asked the price] wheeew close call. We pulled it and took it to our local expert. Worth a ton. So it happends. Both ways. We bought it in a box lot at a clean out sale.

But..it could be a fake, hate to flip flop
but the likelyhood of it being a fake is unfortunately high.

So Jeff tell us the back story on this.

Thanks everyone, Here is the story. I was at a estate auction, where they had a number of high end Chinese pottery and artwork that sold separately This was in a box lot with other smaller items. The auctioneer seemed to pull out the obvious items that were labeled as more well know Oriental collectibles. So like you guys are saying it could go either way. Thats the back story on it

Jeff
this one item might be a sleeper as we say.
your first stop might be right back to the auctioneer. However he or she might be more of a generalist than you need. The auctioneer might be able to refer you to someone locally [where are you] that can give you an appraisal. There are basically three types. 1. for insurance 2. non-certified or off hand and 3. written. Ask ahead of time if there are any fees involved

A written appraisal will cost you some.
It depends on what you might want to do with this peice. If you like it and just want to keep it, just do that.

If you want to resell it, that can be a hassle..or you could get an estimate on it
and re-consign it to the auctioneer.
Thats not as strange as it sounds. The auctioneer will appreciate [and use] your appraisal with confidence that might bring in more at auction..in todays market its a bit of a crap game.

If you don't mind saying , how much did you spend on it ?

welcome to the "stuff" business. haha..i love this stuff