Lot 3225. A rare blue and white 'Dragon' charger, Jiajing six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double rectangle and of the period (1522-1566); 21 in. (53.5 cm.) diam. Estimate HKD 1,800,000 - HKD 2,500,000. Price realised HKD 2,200,000. © Christie's Image Ltd 2015

The dish is well-potted with deep, rounded sides, and is decorated in the center with a five-clawed dragon leaping amidst flower scroll within a double-line border below similar decoration of four striding dragons in the well, which is also repeated on the exterior.

Note: Compare the Jiajing-marked dish painted in underglaze blue, also with a single dragon, full face, leaping amidst lotus scrolls illustrated by R. Krahl, Chinese Ceramics in the Topkapi Saray Museum, vol. II, p. 630, no. 923, and two examples of the same design on a yellow ground, one in the Shanghai Museum, illustrated in Selected Ceramics from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. J.M. Hu, pl. 23, and on the front cover, and another illustrated in Sekai Toji Zenshu, Tokyo, 1976, vol. 14, pl. 216.

CHRISTIE'S. THE IMPERIAL SALE & IMPORTANT CHINESE CERAMICS AND WORKS OF ART, 3 June 2015, Convention Hall