Lot 63. A clair-de-lune-glazed bowl, Yongzheng mark and period (1723-1735); 14.6cm, 5 3/4 in. Estimate 30,000-50,000 GBP. Lot sold 97,250 GBP. Photo Sotheby's

the deep rounded sides rising from a straight foot to a slightly flaring rim, the exterior covered with a lustrous pale lavender-blue glaze, the interior and the base white, the base inscribed with a six-character Yongzheng mark within a double circle.

Provenance: John Sparks Ltd., London, 1953.

The Cartwright collection of Qing monochrome wares

Note: This bowl is notable for the translucency of the glaze which creates a sense of depth through the gradation of the white of the rim to the darker areas where the glaze has pooled. A Yongzheng bowl of related form and colour, but glazed on both sides, was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 13th January 1987, lot 491. Compare a slightly larger Yongzheng mark and period bowl of more flared form, illustrated in John Ayers, Chinese Ceramics in the Baur Collection, vol. 2, Geneva, 1999, pl. A265, where it is catalogued as covered in a 'light blue glaze'.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art. London | 09 Nov 2011