Lot 2810. A fine and rare doucai ‘Daoist immortals’ dish, Yongzheng six-character mark in underglaze blue within double circles and of the period (1723-1735); 8 3/8 in. (21.1 cm.) diam. Estimate HKD 1,000,000 - HKD 2,000,000. Price realised HKD 3,220,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

The dish is decorated with a scene depicting Xi Wangmu, the Daoist Queen Mother of the West and the Three Star Gods borne on iron-red clouds above stylised waves, arriving at the mythical palace of the Isles of the Blessed, the terraced pavilion emerging from multi-coloured clouds and with two cranes in flight to one side, all in a central medallion, within double-line borders repeated at the rim, the underside with bats and clouds in iron red amidst green-enamelled waves outlined in underglaze blue interspersed with two large blue rocks..  

Provenance: Avery Brundage (by repute)
Moy Ying Ming Gallery, Chicago, acquired in 1969

Exhibited: San Antonio Museum of Art, San Antonio, Texas, 1984-2017

Note: Compare to other Yongzheng-marked dishes of this unusual pattern in museums and private collections worldwide, including one illustrated in Porcelains from the Tianjin Municipal Museum, Hong Kong, 1993, pls. 159 and 160; one in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, illustrated by W. B. Honey, Chinese Porcelain, London, 1927, no. 86a; one illustrated in Sekai toji zenshu - 15 Qing, Shogakukan, Tokyo, 1983, p. 174, no. 191; one sold at Sotheby’s New York, 23 September 1997, lot 359; one sold at China Guardian, 15 May 2006, lot 1976; and a pair sold at Christie’s New York, 23 March 2012, lot 2034.

A pair of unusual doucai dishes, Yongzheng six-character marks in underglaze blue within double circles and of the period (1723-1735); 8 5/16 in. (21.2 cm.) diam. Sold for USD 37,500 at Christie’s New York, 23 March 2012, lot 2034. © Christie's Images Ltd 2012

Christie's. Important Chinese Ceramics from The Dr. James D. Thornton Collection, 29 November 2017, Hong Kong