Lot 15. A flambé-glazed vase, Qianlong seal mark and period (1736-1795). Height 11 3 /8 in., 29cm. Estimate 80,000 — 120,000 USD. Unsold. Photo: Sotheby's.

the ovoid body with steep sides rising to broad angled shoulder, rounding at the elegantly waisted neck to an everted rim, set at the neck with two pierced scroll handles with extended terminals, covered overall in a streaked raspberry-red glaze running and pooling with streaks of lavender and violet, the interior applied with a light blue glaze, the base with the six-character seal mark incised and applied with a mottled brown glaze.

Provenance: Sotheby's Hong Kong, 2nd May 2005, lot 682.  

Note: This rare vase is remarkable for its vibrant hues of ruby streaked with lavender, created in imitation of the celebrated Jun wares of the Song period. By the Qing dynasty, Jun wares were regarded as objects of admiration at court as well as amongst literati connoisseurs and wealthy merchant collectors. The Yongzheng and Qianlong emperors sought to reproduce the beautiful glaze effects and graceful forms of Jun wares by commissioning copies from the imperial workshops at Jingdezhen. The streaks characteristic of this glaze are known as yaobian (‘transmutation glaze’). 

Vases of this type are rare and only a small number of related examples are known. Compare one, formerly in the collection of the Rt. Hon. Lord Hollenden, sold in our London rooms, 27th November 1973, lot 349. Another, acquired from Yamanaka & Co. Beijing, in 1919, was sold at Christie's London, 9th November 2010, lot 218.

A flambé-glazed vase, hu, Qianlong incised seal mark and of the period (1736-95), 11¾ in. (29.8 cm.) high. Sold for GBP 301,250 at Christie's London, 9th November 2010, lot 218. © Christie's Images Ltd 2010