A rare robin's egg glazed pear-shaped vase. Seal mark and period of Yongzheng. Photo: Courtesy Sotheby's

the generously rounded lower body supported by a flared foot, rising to a tapered neck and flared mouth, applied overall with a mottled glaze of turquoise and lavender tones extending to the interior of the neck and base, the base impressed with the four-character mark - 25.7cm., 10 1/8 in. - Lot Sold: 2,180,000 HKD

NOTE: It is rare to find vases of this shape decorated in the vibrant 'Robin's egg' glaze, although a closely related example of slightly larger size, from the collection of T.Y. Chao, was sold in these rooms, 18^th November 1986, lot 94. See also Yongzheng period examples of 'Robin's egg' glazed vessles of various forms, such as a pear-shaped vase with garlic head, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Qingdai danse you ciqi tezhan, Taipei, 1981, pl. 41; and a bottle vase with lotus-shaped mouth, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, published in Kangxi. Yongzheng. Qianlong. Qing Porcelain from the Palace Museum Collection, Hong Kong, 1989, pl. 120.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art. 08 Oct 08. Hong Kong - www.sothebys.com