Lot 113. Property sold to benefit the Newark museum acquisition endowment. A rare molded celadon-glazed 'ruyi' bowl, Mark and period of Yongzheng (1723-1735). Diameter 23.8 cm, Lot sold 31,750 USD (Estimate 20,000 - 30,000 USD). © Sotheby's 2024

Provenance: Collection of Herman A. E. (d.1951) and Paul C. (d. 1951) Jaehne.

Gifted to The Newark Museum, Newark, in 1941 (accession no. 41.2036).

Note:  Remarkable for its fine potting, impeccable tactile glaze and elegant molded decoration, the present bowl epitomizes the delicacy and precision of monochrome porcelains achieved by the imperial kilns during the Yongzheng period.

Continuing from the innovations during the Kangxi reign, the potters at Jingdezhen under the Yongzheng Emperor further improved the celadon glazes inspired by earlier Longquan wares. By lowering the iron content in these glazes, a range of more sophisticated and finely textured celadon glazes became available. These were then applied to fine white porcelains made in Jingdezhen, resulting in a more translucent, almost watery representation of the glaze. Evident in the present bowl, the intricacy of the glaze is further enhanced by the molded or carved decorations in relief, where subtle variations in tonal texture are created as the glaze pools in the recessed areas.

A closely related bowl is in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, included in The Charles B. Hoyt Collection, Boston, 1952, cat. no. 440; another was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 20th May 1981, lot 819, where its companion piece was also offered, lot 820. More recently, one previously in the Hall Family Collection, illustrated in Sotheby's Hong Kong Twenty Years, Hong Kong, 1993, pl. 314, was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 8th October 2013, lot 3125.