Lot 284. A cloisonné enamel censer, Gui, Ming dynasty, 15th-16th century; Width 14.5cm, 5¾ in. Lot sold: 9,450 GBP (Estimate: 6,000 - 8,000 GBP). © 2022 Sotheby's.

Lot 286. A cloisonné enamel censer, Gui, Ming dynasty, 15th-16th century; Width 13.7 cm, 5⅜ in. Lot sold: 61,740 GBP (Estimate: 8,000 - 12,000 GBP). © 2022 Sotheby's.

the base with an apocryphal four-character Jingtai mark within a square.

Note: Compare a vase with similar decoration, formerly in the Qing Court collection and now preserved in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Metal-bodied Enamel Ware, Hong Kong, 2002, pl. 37.

Lot 287. A cloisonné enamel censer, Gui, Ming dynasty, 15th-16th century; Width 17 cm, 6⅝ in. Lot sold: 10,080 GBP (Estimate: 8,000 - 12,000 GBP). © 2022 Sotheby's.

Compare two related censers each adorned with a pair of 'rope-twist' handles, attributed to the mid-Ming dynasty, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Zhongguo jin yin boli falangqi quanji [Complete works of Chinese gold, silver, glass and enamelware], vol. 5: Falangqi I [Enamelware I], Shijiazhuang, 2002, pls 77 and 78; and another, attributed to Ming dynasty, 16th century, sold at Christie's London, 7th November 2006, lot 89.

Lot 288. A small cloisonné enamel 'dragon' vase, Ming dynasty, 16th century; Height 11 cm, 4⅓ in. Lot sold: 6,930 GBP (Estimate: 3,000 - 5,000 GBP). © 2022 Sotheby's.

Lot 289. A cloisonné enamel cup and stand, Ming dynasty, 16th century; Diameter of the dish 16.2 cm, 6⅜ in. Lot sold: 7,560 GBP (Estimate: 6,000 - 8,000 GBP). © 2022 Sotheby's.

Lot 290. A cloisonné enamel 'grapes' tripod censer and cover, Late Ming dynasty; Width 17.2 cm, 6¾ in. Lot sold: 12,600 GBP (Estimate: 10,000 - 15,000 GBP). © 2022 Sotheby's.

Note: The brilliantly enamelled design on the current incense burner and cover is extremely rare. The only other recorded example at auction is an identical one sold in these rooms, 16th November 1971, lot 50.  For another incense burner and cover in the Pierre Uldry collection, dating to the first half of the 17th century, with a similar design of grapes, see Helmut Brinker and Albert Lutz, Chinese Cloisonné: The Pierre Uldry Collection, London, 1989, pl. 144. See also 16th century pieces of this pattern illustrated by Sir Harry Garner, Chinese and Japanese Cloisonne Enamels, London, 1962, pls 40a and c. 

Lot 291. A cloisonné enamel 'birds' basin, Late Ming dynasty; Diameter 37.6 cm, 14¾ in. Lot sold: 8,190 GBP (Estimate: 6,000 - 8,000 GBP). © 2022 Sotheby's.

Note: Compare a related cloisonné enamel basin in the Palace Museum, Beijing, attributed to the late Ming dynasty, illustrated in Gugong bowuyuan cangpin daxi: falang qi bian/Compendium of Collections in the Palace Museum: Enamels, vol. 1, Beijing, 2011, pl. 170.

Sotheby's. Monochrome, London, 2 November 2022