Lot 3059. An exceedingly rare Ding ‘Mandarin duck and lotus’ incense burner and cover, Northern Song dynasty (960-1127); 12 7/8 in. (32.8 cm.) high overall. Estimate HKD 3,000,000 - HKD 5,000,000. Price realised HKD 3,725,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2019.

A Rare Ding Ware Incense Burner
Rose Kerr
Museum Expert Advisor, Hong Kong
Former Keeper of the Far Eastern Department, Victoria & Albert Museum

Ding wares enjoyed high status during the Five Dynasties, Northern Song and Jin periods, both at court and in wealthy Buddhist monasteries.1 Official interest in the kilns was intense, and a government Office for Porcelain Tax Affairs, often shortened to Ciyao wushi or simply Yao wushi, was established in the area in the Five Dynasties period, an event recorded in a stele dating to 957.2 Some Ding vessels were inscribed “official” or “new official”, reflecting their exalted status, and Ding wares were requisitioned by the palace all through the Northern Song period. 

Ding ware was also extolled as one of the “Five Classic Wares” of the Song dynasty by scholars of the Ming and Qing dynasties, thereby further enhancing their desirability and value down through the ages. As befitted their exalted status, Ding wares had already attracted attention from Song dynasty scholars such as Lu Yü, Ye Zhi and Zhou Mi, but it was the early Ming author Cao Zhao who first described their quality and value as collectables in some detail. To quote from him: 

Among ancient Ding ware, pieces with fine body and white, lustrous glaze are valuable, while those that are coarse and yellowish are less so. Genuine items have “tear drop” markings on the exterior…..The best Ding wares were made in the Xuanhe and Zhenghe reign periods [1119-25 and 1111-7]..... if it is damaged, cracked or dull, it will be inexpensive. 

Cao also said that in his time Ding ware was already more expensive than fine imperial wares from Jingdezhen.3 Today, they are no less valued. Regular Ding ware bowls and dishes are eagerly sought by collectors, while rare forms (like this artefact) are consummate finds.

This exceptional piece is an incense burner, the cover fashioned in the form of two mandarin ducks, their necks lovingly entwined, and the stand modelled in the form of a lotus flower with upstanding petals. Although the piece has been restored, one can clearly see the extraordinary modelling of a complex design in ceramic. The graceful ducks’ necks recall carving in white jade, for such sinuous curves are uncommonly achieved in ceramic. Even more noteworthy is the modelling of the lotus petals that stand up around the lid, framing the two ducks. Each petal was separately modelled and applied to the upper section of the stand, complete with small, curling sepals. Their placement conveys both fragility and movement. The lower section of the stand rests on small, shaped feet, with above them a band of cartouches containing a scrolling design and small lion heads. Above the cartouches is a ring of pendant lotus petals that terminate in a ruyi-shaped pattern. The pendant lotus petals are moulded with a scrolling design that matches the cartouches. Inside the bowl the character yue月is incised upside down on one side, beneath the rim. 

The form of the censer suggests marital happiness and fidelity, for mandarin ducks and lotus give the saying: May you have a harmonious marriage and may you give birth to many sons. The lotus is the only flower that blooms with the seedpod already in place, and stands for the early arrival of sons.4 Mandarin ducks mate for life, and their graceful, affectionate pose with necks intertwined emphasises a close and loving relationship. 

However the lotus flower also suggests a connection with Buddhism, as does the white colour of the vessel. Buddhist temples and Buddhist practitioners liked to employ white or colourless translucent vessels, for they transmitted light and thereby symbolised the transmission of the Buddha’s radiance, that transcends and transforms. White jade was popular, as was rock crystal and glass. Thin white ceramic vessels also occurred among the possessions of Buddhists. For example, a tomb dating to the early 12th century and associated with a Buddhist monastery, and probably belonging to a high-ranking monk, was excavated in Liaoning. The walls of the tomb chamber were inlaid with fourteen Sanskrit texts in gold, while the burial yielded exquisite porcelain wares of Ding and qingbai ware.5 Both of these ceramics are white porcelain, one from the north of China and one from the south. Both can be fashioned with thin walls to transmit light, thus making both types suitable for a Buddhist context. 

It is possible that incense burners of this shape, with lotus stands surmounted by paired ducks, were originally created in metal. Gold or silver vessels would have been easier to manufacture through shaping and beating, while bronze vessels could be cast. To produce the shapes in ceramic was altogether more difficult. Nevertheless, the most prestigious kilns of the Northern Song period attempted the task. Recent excavations at the Ru ware kiln sites have revealed a number of stand bases moulded with lotus petals. (fig. 1) A whole lotus base from a censer in biscuit, and a number of biscuit and glazed sherds, are illustrated by Ye Zhemin.6 The glazed sherds demonstrate that the petals were carved in great detail, with a line round the edge of the petal and a raised nipple in the centre. However, the petals form a solid shape, unlike the fragile, free-standing petals of the Ding ware vessel. 

fig. 1 Ru ware lotus petal base sherd from the Wumiao site, Ruzhou. Photo provided by Rose Kerr

Duck censers with lotus bases were also manufactured Yaozhou and at Jingdezhen, in qingbai porcelain.7 (fig. 2) Although intricate, the qingbai versions were made with the lotus petal bases fashioned in solid form, without the free-standing artistry of the lotus petals on this Ding ware incense burner.

Fig. 2 A qingbai duck-form censer. Private collection. Courtesy of the collector

Where was such a complex piece of ceramic made? Ding ware was produced at several sites in Hebei province. The ware derives its name from Dingxian, although in fact the kilns were not located there, but at Jianzicun and Yanshancun in Quyang County .8 Quyang county was regulated by Dingzhou prefecture during the Song period, hence the name “Ding ware” and the confusion over its site location. It was a Japanese scholar, Fujio Koyama, who first investigated the kilns in 1941. The vast quantities of sherds and other material collected on that occasion were preserved at the Idemitsu Museum of Art, the MOA Museum and the Nezu Institute of Fine Arts in Japan, and have been studied in some depth.9 Further exploratory work was carried out by Chen Wanli and Feng Xianming in the 1950s. Excavation and survey of the vast waster heaps took place in 1961-2, and work has continued to refine knowledge of the products and periodisation of the kilns since then. Material from Chinese excavations is kept in the Cultural Bureau at Quyang and in the Dingzhou City Museum.10

Ding wares were created from relatively non-plastic, white, porcellanous clays. The predominant potting method was wheel-throwing, with either carved or moulded designs, the latter first employed in the mid 11th century and employing a single interior mould. The censer is a multi-piece item, its component parts made both by throwing and moulding. The basic, inner vessel was thrown, while the base, petals and lid were moulded, and component parts luted together to form the complex whole. The act of pressing clay into a mould is graphically illustrated by the underside of the base, which shows concentric rings of small finger prints. The censer would have been enormously difficult to form and fire, which makes its survival noteworthy. 

One feature of the piece is the intricate moulded patterns present in the cartouches and lotus petals of the base. Elaborate moulded surface designs were produced by engraving leatherhard convex ceramic press-moulds before firing, giving rich and detailed surface ornament, similar to repoussé work on silver, or to brocaded patterns on silk. The manual Gegu yaolun by Cao Zhao, published in 1388, describes how different qualities of Ding ware were regarded11: 

The best have incised designs, the second best are plain, while those with brocade patterns are of third quality.

In fact, this censer incorporates all three styles of decoration; incised, plain and brocade.

Items were fired in saggers, because Ding kilns were of mantou type and from the 10th century used coal for fuel. This gave great heat in the 1,300-1,340°C temperature range, but could result in items being damaged from the spitting coal, if they were not protected by firing boxes. Mantou kilns gave rise to oxidising firing conditions. This gave Ding ware its characteristic warm ivory tone and thicker dribbles of transparent glaze known to Chinese connoisseurs as “tear drops”. The exterior of the censer base has a glaze that is cream-toned where it runs thick, while dribbles of glaze inside the lid show distinct “tear drop” effects.