Lot 16. The Au Bak Ling Collection. A very rare celadon-glazed double-gourd vase, Yongzheng six character archaistic seal mark in underglaze blue and of the period (1723-1735); 32.8 cm high. Price realised HKD 4,410,000 (Estimate HKD 3,000,000-5,000,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

The well-proportioned vase is of the form of a double-gourd, with a globular lower bulb and a pear-shaped upper bulb, covered on the exterior with a smooth, even celadon glaze.

Provenance: Sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 23 May 1978, lot 227.

Note: Double-gourd vases are also known as dajiping ‘vase of good fortune’, as the double-gourd, or bottle gourd, symbolises fertility and good fortune.

Compare to a closely related Yongzheng double-gourd vase from the Qing Court Collection, which is also inscribed with an archaic seal script mark, see Porcelains from the Qing dynasty imperial kilns in the Palace Museum, vol. 1, pt. II, Beijing, 2005, no. 200.

Vases of this form grew in popularity in the succeeding Qianlong reign, when greater quantities were produced. See a pair of Qianlong vases, still retaining their covers, illustrated in The Tsui Museum of Art. Chinese Ceramics IV, Hong Kong, 1995, no. 37; and one sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 28 May 2014, lot 3308.

Christie's. The Au Bak Ling Collection: The Inaugural Sale, Hong Kong, 26 September 2024