Lot 67. A large blue and white sleeve vase, Qing dynasty, Shunzhi period (1644-1661); 43.8cm. 17 1/4 in. Estimate 8,000 — 10,000 GBP. Lot sold 9,600 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's 2007

of cylindrical form with flat base and tall waisted neck, finely painted around the exterior in rich cobalt-blue tones with scholars playing weiqi amidst a landscape with equestrian figures and swirling mist, all between incised classic scroll and wave bands at the foot and shoulder and a pendent stiff leaf band at the rim.

Note: A tall vase of this form painted with a scene of figures in landscape is illustrated in Julia B. Curtis, Chinese Porcelains of the Seventeenth Century, New York, 1995, p. 48, pl. 4, where the author notes that the horizontal clouds represent the conventional 'back' found on many porcelains made between the 1630s and the early 1660s. This convention works as a frame for the different scenes taken from woodblock-printed books, scenes which were transposed from a flat surface to a round object.