A Pair of Chinese Porcelain Hat Stand Table Lamps

Republic period (1912-1949), porcelain hand painted in enamels and gilt with a pheasant perched on a pink rose bush with lush blooms, above a Chinese inscription in ink with a red seal, the hat stands have been drilled and fitted in mounts as lamps, come together with fabric shades.

HOA 26 1/2 x 16 1/2 in. diameter

From the Collection of Adrienne and John C. Maxwell, Jr. John C. Maxwell Jr. assembled one of the most distinguished private collections of Asian art in the American South, with a particular focus on Chinese, Korean, and Japanese works spanning antiquity through the late imperial period. A financier and respected market analyst by profession, Maxwell developed his interest in Asian art during his military service in Korea in the early 1950s. What began as personal study evolved into a lifelong commitment to collecting, scholarship, and connoisseurship.

The collection formed by Maxwell and his wife Adrienne reflects Maxwell’s highly analytical eye and preference for works possessing strong historical character, refined craftsmanship, and clear cultural significance. Numerous objects from the collection together with their private library of 1,200 scholarly Asian art journals and books were gifted to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, where they became part of the museum’s Maxwell East Asian Collection.

The lamps feature a inscription of a spring poem reading 花開似錦，鳥音如簧 "The flowers bloom like brocade, the birds sing like flutes."

One lamp with hairline at top of vase; both working at time of evaluation; both vases with areas of gilt rubbing; vases not examined outside of the mounts.