Notes

The building of the Jerling Estate Blue and White “Kraak”  Porcelain Collection represents a lifetime’s passion.

Originally destined for European dining tables, in 1630 it was lost when the São Gonçalo, a Portuguese merchant ship in whose hold it was stowed, sank while at anchor during a freak storm in Bahia Formosa, now Plettenberg Bay.  

350 years later, shards were found on the dunes opposite the Jerling Plettenberg Bay home, sparking an interest in collecting, beginning with the first piece of significance which Della Jerling spotted on display in a shop window in Sandton, Johannesburg.

Peter and Della Jerling’s search was fuelled  during their extensive travels, particularly as expats in Persia in the early 1960s, where Della was a volunteer at a children’s hospital in Tehran.  A picture of her with her finger to her lips served as a “Quiet Please” sign in many hospitals until 1984 when it was removed by the Ayatollah regime. (see photograph)

Their journey as collectors led to many friendships and experiences, many of the pieces being sourced for the family in London by Chinese porcelain specialist, Anita Gray.

The sadness of the decision by Peter and Della’s two sons to part with this collection, which was a central part of their home while growing up, is offset by the hope that that it will be treasured by another family who will derive as much pleasure from it as they have for many years to come.

Provenance

Sotheby's Parke Bernet, Johannesburg, 24 November 1982, lot 242.

The Jerling Collection of Blue & White 'Kraak' Porcelain.

Literature

cf. Rinaldi, M (1989) Kraak Porcelain, A Moment in the History of Trade, Bamboo Publishing Ltd, London, where a similar example is illustrated on page 110, pl. 107.