A RUBY-GROUND FAMILLE-ROSE 'IMPERIAL POEM' WALL VASE Qianlong mark, Republic periodPROPERTY OF ANOTHER OWNERA RUBY-GROUND FAMILLE-ROSE 'IMPERIAL POEM' WALL VASEQianlong mark, Republic periodOf bottle vase form with a tapered lower body rising to a rounded shoulder and tall, waisted neck, the principal side dominated by a petal-form panel enclosing an imperial poem dated to the yiyou year of the Qianlong reign (corresponding to 1765) followed by two seals bearing the emperor's name, the panel with a gilt border set against a raspberry-toned ground enlivened with composite floral scroll in vibrant polychrome enamels, all below a ruyi-head border at the shoulder, upright plantain leaves at the neck, and patterned borders at the rim, the reverse enameled ruby red and with a recessed notch and four pierced holes for suspension, all set over an integral faux bois stand with a six-character Qianlong mark in gilt at the base. 10 1/2in (26.7cm) highProvenance:Sara Fredericks (1903-1986), likely acquired in the 1960s in New York, thence by descentThe present vase is brilliantly painted in famille-rose enamels utilizing a favorite palette and poem of the Qianlong emperor. The text is written in clerical script, one of the four styles approved for inscribing imperial poems on vases, according to an official memorandum written by Tang Ying (1682-1756) dated the 7th year of the Qianlong reign (corresponding to 1742). The poem, Yong ci gua ping ('Song for a wall vase'), was composed by the emperor in the yiyou year (corresponding to 1765) and the following year was included in Qing Gaozong yuzhi shiwen quanji, yuzhi shi san ji ('The Complete Collection of Qing Gaozong's Imperial Poems, Book Three'). The same poem appears on four Qianlong mark and period yangcai-enameled wall vases from the Qing Court Collection, and now in the National Palace Museum, Taipei (coll. nos 中瓷001931, 中瓷001932, 中瓷001934, and 中瓷001926); and on a Qianlong mark and period celadon-glazed wall vase from the Tianminlou Collection sold at Sotheby's, Hong Kong, 2 April 2019, lot 15.The poem reads:依然膽搥式，卻異汝官珍；動挈路搴秀，靜懸屋盎春。製惟日趨巧，道不易還淳；紅紫隨時閱，何曾著點塵。 乾隆乙酉御題Sara Fredericks (1903-1986) was a socialite and premier retailer who specialized in luxury women's apparel. She was friends with top fashion designers including James Galanos, Bill Blass, Oscar de la Renta, and Hubert de Givenchy, and her company, Sara Fredericks Salon Shops, carried clothes by these designers as well as by Chanel, Chloe, and other iconic brands. The company had locations in Miami, Palm Beach, Sarasota, New York City, and Boston.