Lot 860. A blue and white bottle, bình Tỳ Bà, Lê dynasty, 15th-16th century; 11 1/2in (29cm) high. Estimate US$ 2,000 - 3,000 (€1,700 - 2,500). Sold for US$ 1,250 (€1,055).Photo: Bonhams.

Of pear form with a flared rim to the neck, painted in underglaze cobalt with successive bands of plantain leaves, descending jeweled lappets and birds alternating with bamboo above a jeweled lappet band rising along the foot, the foot area unglazed and brown wash applied across the recessed base..  

Published: James H. Brow and Anh Hoang Brow, 'Vietnamese Ceramics: A Ten Thousand Year Continuum,' Arts of Asia, March-April 2004, p. 90, no. 27.

Note: Bottles with identical or very similar decoration were also part of the cargo sold in Butterfields sale, Treasures from the Hoi An Hoard, 11-13 October, 2000, lots 289 to 309. For another example with the bird facing to the left, see John Stevenson and John Guy, Vietnamese Ceramics: A Separate Tradition, 1997, p. 335, no. 291. For an example excavated at the kiln site, see the front cover illustration on Tang Ba Huanh (editor), Gom Chu Dao [Chu Dao Ceramics], 1999, also illustrated on p. 133, A150.