A blue and white cylindrical vase, rolwagen. Circa 1640. Photo Bonhams

Brightly painted on one side in tones of characteristic blue with three attendants behind a dignitary standing on a terrace greeting two kneeling figures, beneath stiff leaves on the waisted neck. 46cm (18¼in) high. Estimate: £7,000 - 10,000, HKD 89,000 - 130,000, $ 11,000 - 16,000

Note: The term 'rolwagen', which means nothing in 17th century Dutch, has recently been considered by C.Sheaf, Reflections on Transitional Blue and White, Arts of Asia, Vol.39, Issue 1, Jan-Feb 2009, pp.91-99. The author proposes that with the introduction of these splendid simple cylindrical vases, designed to be viewed around by rolling them, a simple hand-writing mistake in the letter 's' in a VOC ledger recording the purchase of 'rolvasen' (vases which rotated for viewing) was crystallised into the meaningless name 'rolwagen' by which collectors now know these.