Incised porcelain bottle

[Bob]

Good morning. This is another bottle I'm not sure about. The bottle is 2 3/4 inches tall, baluster shaped, and carved with an egret standing among lotus flowers. The body and foot are covered in a clear glaze with the foot rim left unglazed. I found a couple of similar bottles in catalogs describing the same scene, but the incising is not visible to compare. Both were dated mid 19th century. I know very little about porcelain and have no idea if this is old or modern. It came in a group alongside two other bottles that appear to be correct, but I know that means nothing. Any information would be greatly appreciated.  Bob

[Fiveroosters aka clayandbrush]

Dear Bob,
this kind of decoration is called “graffito”. You can either find “sgraffito”, “sgraffiato”, etc, but it is the same.
It is different from Anhua, which means hided decoration, where the incision is lighter and it is better visible in backlight.
Here the incision is more visible.
What I find strange is the glaze. It has a butter like color, while that on the base is pure white. I am not at ease with that glaze, and despite you said that you have found two bottles in catalogs, I find odd that motif on an incised bottle. Usually, incised motifs are dragon, phoenix and clouds. Because of that, unless references are found, I would think that it is a modern bottle.
But let see if others have seen something similar.
Kind regards
Giovanni

[Bob]

Thanks for responding Giovanni. The bottle is almost pure white. That is just the lighting. The base and body are identical. I'm posting a different picture. The bottles I found were in Sotheby's 1997 Gerry Mack Collection and Sotheby's 2000 Guo'an collection. My camera broke and I'm using an I-pod to take pictures and it's not the best. I appreciate the information on graffito. I'm going to read up on it. Thanks again.  Bob      Just wanted to add that the 2nd and third picture more accurately depict the depth of incising.

[Joey]

Dear Bob,

      I like the bottle.
Is there any wear on the outer surface, such as very fine scratches, or is the surface pristine?
If pristine, I'd agree with Giovanni. If there is very fine wear visible with a magnifying glass,
I'd suggest it is 1820-1880.
Best,
Joey

[Fiveroosters aka clayandbrush]

Dear Bob,
as I said, my opinion was based on the reason that I have never seen before that motif incised on a bottle.
I am happy for you.
Kind regards
Giovanni

[Bob]

Thank you Joey and Giovanni. I appreciate your help.  Bob