Lot 3233. A rock crystal vase and cover, Qing Dynasty, 18th Century. Estimate 500,000 — 700,000 HKD. Lot Sold 560,000 HKD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the hexagonal-sectioned body supported on a pronounced foot, gently curving at the shoulders to a flared neck, flanked by four animal-mask handles, each suspending a loose ring, the hexagonal cover surmounted by a finial of conforming shape.

Provenance: Estate of Dorothy H. Guider.
Sotheby's New York, 26th November 1991, lot 373.

Note: Rock crystal is known as 'water jade' (shuiyu) in China where it has long been prized for its purity and clarity which made it popular among the literati, with their respect for learning and uprightness. Only the finest quality crystal was left undecorated to highlight the lucidity of the material, as seen in the present vase.

Compare a quatrefoil vase of similar size and with similar angled shoulders, but of slender baluster form and with two dragon-head ringed handles, from the collection of Mary M. Harness and J.M. Hatton, sold in our London rooms, 15th April 1983, lot 193; and a smaller example also of quatrefoil section and flanked by two handles of related form, sold at Christie's London, 17th December 1981, lot 471.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Hong Kong, 08 april 2011