Lot 16. A yellow-glazed bowl, Ming dynasty, Zhengde six-character mark within a double circle in underglaze blue and of the period (1506-1521); H. 7.5 cm; diam. 16.2 cm. Price realised EUR 18,900 (Estimate EUR 3,000 – EUR 4,000). © Christie's 2024

Provenance: Christie's London, Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, 11 December 1989, lot 48.

Property from an important European private collection.

Note: Monochrome yellow glazes were typically used to decorate dishes and bowls in the late 15th-16th centuries, such as the present bowl. Although they are believed to have been manufactured for the sole use of the Imperial court, it appears that some also found their way abroad, probably as diplomatic gifts. John Alexander Pope mentions that there are sixteen monochrome yellow-glazed wares amongst the Chinese porcelains dedicated to the Ardebil Shrine by Shah Abbas in 1611. These sixteen pieces date to the Hongzhi, Zhengde, Jiajing, and Wanli periods. See J. A. Pope, Chinese Porcelains from the Ardebil Shrine, Washington, 1956, p. 151.