Lot 28. A hexagonal Ru-style truncated Gu-shaped vase, Yongzheng mark and period (1723-1735); 10.3 cm, 4 in. Estimate 40,000 — 60,000 GBP. Lot Sold 43,750 GBP. Courtesy Sotheby's 2018.

the rounded central section rising from a spreading foot to a wasted neck and everted rim, covered with a pale grey-blue crackled glaze, the base inscribed with a six-character seal mark in underglaze blue, Japanese wood box. Quantité: 2.

Note: This vase is striking for its refined body which is covered in a luminous greyish-blue glaze, the beauty of which is heightened in its small size. It not only captures the brilliance of celebrated Ru ware of the Song dynasty (960-1279), but also captures the Yongzheng Emperor’s taste for innovative forms based on archaic bronzes. A great connoisseur of antiquities and with a discerning aesthetic sense for works of art, the Yongzheng Emperor was known to have commissioned finely manufactured wares that were marked with a restrained elegance from the first year of his reign. Under the mastermind of Tang Ying (1682-1756), Superintendent of the Imperial kilns in Jingdezhen, many monochrome wares simulating the elegance of Song glazes on both classic and innovative forms were successfully developed.

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, London, 16 may 2018, 10:30 AM