Lot 19. A rare Longquan celadon brush washer, xi , Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279); 6 ¾ in. (17.2 cm.) diam. Estimate GBP 80,000 - GBP 120,000 (USD 102,800 - USD 154,200). Price realised GBP 323,250. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019. 

The washer is finely potted with straight sides rising from a short, tapering foot to an everted, flattened rim that thins towards the edge. It is covered overall with an unctuous glaze of even bluish-green tone that is suffused with a few crackles to the interior and that fades to a pale mushroom tone in a thin line at the rims. The unglazed foot rim is fired orange.

Provenance: Private Japanese Collection, acquired in Japan in the 1970s.

Note: The present washer is covered with an exceptionally beautiful glaze, of soft bluish-celadon tone. Longquan glazes of this type are held in the higest regard. The production of such high-quality celadon wares at the Longquan kilns was influenced by the establishment of the Guan kiln after the Song court settled in Hangzhou.

Several comparable examples in Museum collections are known. A Longquan celadon washer of similar form and identical size to the present vessel, now in the collection of the Sichuan museum, was excavated in 1974 from a Yuan tomb in Yuanyichang, Dongxi, Jianyang county. See Zhu Boqian (ed.), Celadons from Longquan Kilns, Taipei, 1998, p. 172 fig.144-1 and fig.144-2. A similarly proportioned Longquan brush washer in the collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei, is illustrated in Porcelain of the National Palace Museum - Lung-ch’üan Ware of the Sung Dynasty, Hong Kong, 1962, p. 61, pls. 18 & 18a. Another Longquan brush washer from the Qing Court Collection is in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, and illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - 33 - Porcelain of the Song Dynasty (II), Hong Kong, 1996, p. 145, no. 130. The Beijing brush washer also has a fine bluish glaze, but with some crackle reminiscent of Guan ware. A glaze similar to that on the current vessel can be seen on another similarly shaped washer in the Percival David Foundation. This Longquan washer has an uncrackled glaze, and a copper band has been applied to its mouth rim, probably to disguise minor damage. See Masterpieces of Chinese Ceramics from the Percival David Collection, Osaka, 1998, p. 53, no. 23.

Depictions of fine Longquan celadon wares in 18th century imperial paintings indicate a particular appreciation for these wares by the Yongzheng (1723-1735) and Qianlong (1736-1795) emperors. A Longquan brush washer of comparable form to the present vessel can be seen in an imperial scroll in the Percival David Foundation, Guwan tu, 'Ancient Playthings', depicting items from the imperial collection, dated by inscription to the sixth year of Yongzheng (1728). See Evelyn S. Rawski and Jessica Rawson, China: The Three Emperors 1662-1795, London, 2005, pp. 252-253, no. 168. The washer appears to be of similar color to the present vessel and is painted with a crackled glaze. Another Longquan brush washer is illustrated in a leaf from a Qianlong-period album entitled Refined Ceramics of Collected Antiquity, in the collection of the National Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Obtaining Refined Enjoyment: The Qianlong Emperor’s Taste in Ceramics, Taipei, 2012, pp. 224-25, no. 104. 

A similarly-formed but slightly smaller Longquan washer in the Linyushanren Collection was sold at Chrsitie's New York, 15 September 2016, lot 719.

From the Linyushanren Collection. A rare Longquan celadon brush washer, Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279); 5 ¾ in. (14.5 cm.) diam. Sold for 1,025,000 USD at Chrsitie's New York, 15 September 2016, lot 719. © Christie's Image Ltd 2016.

Cf. my post: A rare Longquan celadon brush washer, Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279)