Lot 851. Three Ko-Sometsuke petal-lobed dishes, late Ming dynasty, Chongzhen period (1628-1644); 8¼ in, 5¾ in. and 5¾ in. (21, 14.5 and 14.5 cm.) diam. Estimate USD 4,000 - USD 6,000. Price realised USD 6,875. © Christie's Images Ltd 2014

The larger bracket-lobed dish is decorated with a scene of a scholar under a willow tree with his attendant walking towards him holding a censer, a four-character mark, tianxia taiping ('peace under heaven'), is inscribed on the base within a double square and a circle in underglaze blue. The two smaller dishes are each decorated with a long-tailed bird perched on a rock surrounded by chrysanthemum, and an apocryphal Chenghua mark is on each base. The rim of all three is covered with a brown wash. 

Provenance: L. B. Cohen.
Vallin Galleries, Connecticut.
Alfred E. Guntermann (1943-2013) Collection.

Christie's. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS AND WORKS OF ART, 18 – 19 September 2014, New York, Rockefeller Plaza