The Alphabet of Art & Antiques – Q is for…

March 2, 2021

Qingbai

Qingbai is Chinese porcelain from the Song dynasty (960-1279) with its signature translucent misty-blue glaze. It is also known as yingqing.

A celadon-glazed porcelain plate with a pale bluish-green tint. The surface features subtle carved floral patterns and slightly scalloped edges. The glaze shows fine crackling, giving the surface delicate texture. This work of art stands out beautifully against a dark gray background, making it an exquisite choice for collectors of antiques.

A Qingbai carved deep conical bowl, southern Song dynasty, 13th century. Image via Christie’s.

Quadrant

A quadrant is a navigation instrument used for measuring altitude. It is made up of a quarter-circle of wood or metal marked with a graded scale of angles. From the late 16th century quadrants made of brass, or brass and mahogany, with a pivoted radius, or index arm, came into use.

A brass, quarter-circle scientific instrument featuring engraved concentric circles, numbers, and text in a decorative alphabet style. This antique piece has a central rotating arm and an ornate clover-shaped dial, with visible rivets and signs of age, likely used for astronomical or mathematical calculations. It stands as a compelling example of artful craftsmanship in historical scientific tools.

An Astrolabe quadrant, probably Italian circa 1400. Image via Dorotheum.

Quaich

A quaich is a drinking vessel (pronounced “quake”, from the Gaelic word “cuach”), a uniquely Scottish invention. It is believed that its ancestor was the scallop shell, in which drams of whisky were taken in the Highlands and Islands. Like the shells, quaichs were always wide and shallow. The distinctive shape has remained the same for more than four hundred years.

A polished silver bowl with two flat, ornate handles sits on a clear stand. Blending artful craftsmanship with exquisite detail, the bowl’s center features a coin with a profile of a person in relief and an inscription around the edge resembling elegant alphabet letters. The gradient gray background highlights the antique bowl’s reflective surface.

Antique silver Scottish quaich, circa 1900. Image via Scottish Antiques.

Quarrel

A quarrel or bolt is the term for the ammunition used in a crossbow. The name quarrel is derived from the French carré (“square”), referring to the fact that they usually have square heads.

Four medieval spearheads are shown upright, each with distinct metal points reminiscent of fine art; from left to right: a narrow pointed tip, a diamond-shaped tip, a winged barbed tip, and a broad leaf-shaped tip. All are mounted on wooden shafts against a neutral background, evoking the craftsmanship prized by collectors of antiques.

Crossbow bolts or quarrels, probably 15th or 16th century. Image via The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Quartering

Quartering is a veneering lay-out/technique using four pieces of wood with the same grain pattern to form a surface. Each quarter has a pattern that is a mirror image of the one alongside.

A rectangular wooden panel with a geometric diamond pattern in the wood grain, this decorative piece evokes the refined elegance of antiques. The edges are framed with a darker wood, and each corner features a square, gold-toned metal accent. The overall look is symmetrical and artistic, making it a striking addition to any space.

Detail image of a Tucker & Marks-designed powder room with quartered veneer walls. Photo by Edward Addeo.

Quartetto tables

A set of four small tables, slightly decreasing in size from one table to the next, so that they can be fitted into each other to form a nest, or used separately.

Three vintage nesting tables are shown, each with dark, turned spindle legs and lighter wooden tops. The smallest table has a decorative checkerboard pattern reminiscent of classic antiques. The tables are stacked together, showing their graduated sizes like a well-ordered alphabet from largest to smallest. The background is plain white.

A set of regency specimen-wood quartetto tables by Gillows, circa 1810-15. Image via Christie’s.

Quatrefoil

A quatrefoil is an ornamental design that usually consists of 4 partial and intersecting circles, resembling a flower or four-leaf clover.

Rows of ornate white arches with quatrefoil openings cast patterned shadows on a balcony below. Detailed carvings—almost like an alphabet of motifs—decorate the arch columns and the top frieze. The architecture is intricate, historic, and appears sunlit, evoking the refined beauty of art and treasured antiques.

The quatrefoils adorning the loggia of the Doge’s Palace in Venice, Italy.

Queen’s Ware

Queen’s Ware is a type of Wedgwood ceramic named after the gift of a tea set to Queen Charlotte, consort of George III, which resulted in the appointment of Wedgwood as Potter to Her Majesty in 1765. Wedgwood immediately named his range of cream colored tableware Queen’s Ware. By 1775 Wedgwood’s Queen’s ware was being imitated all over Europe as the continental potteries reacted to its virtual monopoly in high quality earthenware. In France the imitation wares were known as “faience anglaise”.

Cream-colored ceramic soup tureen with lid, featuring ornate shell and floral motifs, sits beside a matching oval platter with scalloped, relief-decorated edges—both reflecting an elegant, vintage style that would delight any lover of Antiques—set against a light mint green background.

Tureen with plate. Wedgwood Queen’s ware, circa 1770. Photo by Jacques Pugin. © Musée Ariana, Geneva, Switzerland.

Quilling

Quilling or Paper Filigree is an art form that involves the use of strips of paper that are rolled, shaped, and glued together to create decorative designs. During the Renaissance, French and Italian nuns and monks used quilling to decorate book covers and religious items. The paper most commonly used was strips of paper trimmed from the gilded edges of books. These gilded paper strips were then rolled to create the quilled shapes. Quilling often imitated the original ironwork of the day. The name quilling is said to be derived from the fact that the nuns and monks originally used feather quills as their tool to roll the paper.

Hexagonal wooden box with intricate filigree patterns, a metal handle on top, and a circular portrait of a woman in a white dress framed on one side. The box features ornate, detailed carvings reminiscent of fine art and antiques, all enhanced by its rich, brown finish.

Tea caddy with quilled decorations, circa 1780-1800. Image via the V&A.

By Vera Vandenbosch