Lot 3587. An Underglaze Blue and Yellow Enamelled ‘Dragon’ Bowl, Mark and Period of Kangxi (1662-1722). D 13.2cm H 6.5cm. Sold for HKD 504,000 (Estimate HKD 200,000 - 250,000). © Poly Auction Hong Kong Limited 2022

The bowl has a slightly flared open mouth and a curved belly with a rounded footrim. The outer wall is decorated with two pearl-driven dragons, and the bowl is decorated with a bow-shaped dragon in the centre of the bowl, a unique form of dragon decoration for the Kangxi Imperial kilns. The glaze is excellent, and the blue and white floral designs are bright and vivid, with the dragons depicted in a lively and imposing manner, the blue and white floral colouring and the yellow glaze bright and eye-catching, the contrast between the two colours strong and decorative. The blue and white decoration is inscribed in regular script 'Made during the Kangxi period of the Qing dynasty'. According to the Palace History of the Qing dynasty, this bowl was used exclusively for the use of ladies of the harem, and it was always the style of the royal family to distinguish themselves by their colour.

It was first painted with cobalt to create a white pattern, then glazed and fired at a high temperature, and then filled with yellow colour on the white areas and fired at a low temperature. The bowl is decorated with two beaded dragons on the outer wall and a bow-shaped dragon in the centre, a unique shape for a dragon of the Kangxi Imperial kilns. It is light and delicate, with excellent glaze, and the blue and white floral decoration is bright and vivid, with the dragons depicted in a lively and dignified manner. The blue and white regular script is a standard Kangxi Official School style.

Provenance: Meiyintang Collection, Switzerland.

Note: For a few recent examples, see The Longquan Hall Collection, Cocoon Hill, Sotheby's Hong Kong, 8 October 2014, no. 3119; Christie's Hong Kong, 28 November 2012, no. 2140; Poly Hong Kong, 6 April 2015, no. 3352.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version).

Poly Auction Hong Kong Limited. A Romance Among Blooming Roses: The Meiyintang Collection of Three Dynasties Imperial Ceramics, Hong Kong, 2 Dec 2021