Lot 1343. Property from the Yidetang Collection. A rare blue and white 'lotus' dish, Xuande six-character mark in underglaze blue in a line and of the period (1573-1619); 27.4 cm diam. Price realised HKD 2,520,000(Estimate HKD 2,000,000 – HKD 3,000,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

Provenance: J.M.Hu Family Collection
Sold at Christie’s New York, 20 March 1997, lot 71

Literature: Helen D. Ling and Edward T. Chow, Collection of Chinese Ceramics from the Pavilion of Ephemeral Attainment, vol. I, Hong Kong, 1950, pl. 42

Note: The present dish is decorated with five lotus blossoms in the centre and below a composite floral scroll that is repeated on the exterior between a band of conjoined trefoils and a narrow band of lingzhi-scroll motif.

Of the published dishes of this type and date, almost all have a chrysanthemum scroll on the exterior, unlike the composite foliate scroll which decorates both the well and exterior of the present dish. See a Xuande dish decorated with chrysanthemum scrolls, sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 29 May 2019, lot 2812. Compare also with a very similar example painted with composite floral scroll, discovered at Zhushan in 1982 and published in Xuande Imperial Porcelain Excavated at Jingdezhen, Taipei, 1998, no. 92; and one example sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 30 May 2012, lot 3972.

Early 15th century dishes of this pattern are very rarely marked. See an unmarked Yongle example with chrysanthemum on the exterior, illustrated by Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, vol.2, London, 1994, p.49, no.662; and two examples recorded by Alexander Pope, Chinese Porcelains from the Ardebil Shrine, Washington D.C., 1956, no. 29.118-119.

Lot 1394. A rare blue and white 'Immortal' bowl, Xuande six-character mark in underglaze blue in a line and of the period (1573-1619); 19.4 cm diam., Japanese wood box. Price realised HKD 30,625,000 (Estimate HKD 25,000,000 – HKD 35,000,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

Literature: Ching Wan Society Twentieth Anniversary Exhibition- Works of Art, Taipei, 2012, p. 131, no. 43

Exhibited: National Museum of History, Ching Wan Society Twentieth Anniversary Exhibition, Taipei, 20 October- 9 December 2012

Note: The present bowl is decorated within a double-line border with a continuous scene depicting a female immortal seated on the back of a phoenix amidst billowing clouds flying towards another female figure seated within a pavilion shaded by a willow tree, all above a band of classic scroll encircling the foot. This subject matter is commonly referred to as the ‘immortal’ bowl, yet the story draws inspiration from a beloved folkloric tale, symbolising the wish for a joyous marriage, and the continuous decorations create a dynamic visual effect that resembles a unfolding painting scroll as the bowl is turned.

An almost identical bowl in shape, composition and size (19.5 cm.), bearing the same mark, is in the National Palace Museum Collection, collection no. guci 003130N000000000. Another Xuande-marked bowl of similar size (19.6 cm.), decorated with a female immortal, possibly Xiwangmu, riding a crane towards a vacant pavilion, is in the same collection, illustrated in the Special Exhibition of Hsuan-te Period Porcelain, Taipei, 1983, pl. 32.

Compare also to an almost identical Xuande-marked bowl, formerly in the E.T. Chow and Falk Collections, sold at Christie’s New York, 16 October 2001, lot 134. Another similar Xuande-marked comparable that is decorated with four ladies in a garden scene, formerly in the Tianminlou Collection, sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 30 November 2023, lot 2704.

Lot 1303. A very rare blue and white 'birds and flowers' bowl, Jiajing six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle and of the period (1522-1566); 27.4 cm diam. Price realised HKD 403,200 (Estimate HKD 180,000 – HKD 260,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

Provenance: Max Müller (1867-1960), German Consul to China
By descent to Irmgard Müller-Doertenback (1909-2011)
Acquired by the present family in 1992

Note: Compare to a similar bowl also decorated with flowers and birds, currently preserved in the Palace Museum Collection, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red (II), Hong Kong, 2000, p. 154, no. 143.

Lot 1337. A massive blue and white 'dragon' basin, Jiajing six-character mark in underglaze blue in a line and of the period (1522-1566); 72 cm diam. Price realised HKD 453,600 (Estimate HKD 200,000 – HKD 300,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

Provenance: T. T. Tsui Collection, acquired in 1997

Exhibited: Tsui Museum of Art, Hong Kong​​​​​​​

Lot 1303. A very rare blue and white circular 'cranes' box and cover, Wanli six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle and of the period (1573-1619); 15.8 cm diam. Price realised HKD 504,000 (Estimate HKD 400,000 – HKD 600,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

Provenance: Dr. Adam Breur (1868-1944) Collection, Germany, and thence by descent within the family

Note: A related Wanli-marked example is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Blue and White Porcelain with Underglaze Red (II), Hong Kong, 2000, pl. 109. Other examples are illustrated in Chinese Ceramics in The Idemitsu Collection, Japan, 1987, fig. 732; one from the Toguri Collection, illustrated in Sekai toji zenshu, vol. 14, Tokyo, 1976, pl. 103, which was sold at Sotheby's London, 9 June 2004, lot 43.

Lot 1342. Property from the Yidetang Collection. A rare large blue and white 'dragon' garlic mouth vase, suantouping, Wanli six-character mark in underglaze blue within a rectangle and of the period (1573-1619); 49.5 cm high. Price realised HKD 3,276,000 (Estimate HKD 2,100,000 – HKD 3,000,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

Provenance: Sold at Christie's London, 16 November 1998, lot 78

Note: The pear-shaped body painted in blue tones with two lively pairs of five-clawed dragons contesting a flaming pearl reserved on a ground of leafy flower sprays, above a band of plantain leaves around the foot, the neck enclosing curled leaves beneath birds in flight and perched on flowering trees.

The design of the present vase differs slightly from its comparable examples in being a ‘dragon’ vase rather than a ‘dragon and phoenix’ vase. Compare to a nearly identical vase in the Idemitsu Collection, illustrated in the 15th Anniversary Exhibition Catalogue, Tokyo, 1981, p.202, no.844; one illustrated by She Cheng, Mingdai Qinghua Ciqi Fazhan yu Yishu zhi Yanjiu, Taipei, 1986, p.343, no.175; and one in Shanghai Museum, included in Studies of the Shanghai Museum Collections: Ming Ceramics, Shanghai, 2007, p.56, no.1-73.

Also see a ‘dragon and pheonix’ example illustrated in Mayuyama, Seventy Years, vol.1, Tokyo, 1976, p.320, no.956, and sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 1 June 2011, lot 3591. An example of an enamelled vase of this design is in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, and recorded in Enamelled Ware of the Ming Dynasty, Book III, Taipei, 1966, p.30, no.1

Lot 1344. Property from the Yidetang Collection. A large blue and white 'Four scholarly pursuits' jar, Wanli six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle and of the period (1573-1619); 34.2 cm high. Price realised HKD 1,764,000 (Estimate HKD 450,000 – HKD 600,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

Provenance: Sold at Sotheby’s London, 16 June 1999, lot 793

Note: The impressive jar is painted in rich cobalt blue, to the exterior with four figural scenes, each depicting scholars participating in leisurely pursuits with their servants in attendance.

It is unusual to find a jar of this design bearing a Wanli mark. A similar example in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is recorded in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red (II), Hong Kong, 2000, no.100. Another nearly identical Jiajing example, is illustrated in Chinese Porcelain in the S.C. Ko Tianminlou Collection, Hong Kong, 1987, no.36, later sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 30 November 2023, lot 2706.

Lot 1392. A fine and rare blue and white 'dragon and peacock' gu-form vase, suantouping, Wanli six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle and of the period (1573-1620); 57.5 cm high, Japanese wood box . Price realised HKD 2,268,000 (Estimate HKD 1,800,000 – HKD 2,500,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

Provenance: Acquired in Japan in 2022

Note: Gu-form vases of this size were used as altar vases at the imperial court during the Wanli period. While similar blue and white examples exist, few surpass the present example in the richness of its cobalt-blue, and the intricacy of its details.

Compare a larger Wanli blue and white gu-form vase painted with mythical beasts in the Palace Museum, Beijing, with fewer decorative bands, see The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red (II), Hong Kong, 2000, p. 184, no. 173; and a wucai gu-form vase in the same institution sharing a nearly identical decoration, size and form to the present vase, see The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Porcelains in Polychrome and Contrasting Colours, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 37, no. 34.

Lot 1306. A blue and white ‘Xu xun quelling the ghost’ brush pot, late Ming-early Qing dynasty, 17th century; 20. 5 cm diam., box. Price realised HKD 630,000 (Estimate HKD 500,000 – HKD 800,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2024.

The cylindrical brush pot is painted with a lively battle scene, depicting numerous demons in a river battling ghost hunters in a continuous landscape; all set amongst trees and rocks.

Provenance: Max Müller (1867-1960), German Consul to Shanghai, and later Wuhan, during the late Qing period, who acquired the present lot in Shanghai around 1905-1908
By descent to Irmgard Müller-Doertenback (1909-2011)
Acquired by the present family prior to 1996

Note: The decoration on the brush pot depicts the myth of the Daoist Immortal Xu Xun. He is shown among figures on a riverbank quelling demons in the river. Xu Xun was a celebrated Daoist priest of the Jin dynasty (265-420), who was fond of the techniques for attaining immortality. Having mastered the 'Daoist Magical Skills' (daofa), he was known in many mystical stories about his fights against dragons and killing of snakes to rid people of evil and demons. A brush pot of similar form and decoration to that of the present example is in the collection of the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, Accession no. EA1978.2056.

Christie's. Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Hong Kong, 29 November 2024