Lot 222. A rare Dehua incense burner, Late Ming dynasty, Zungu Xunjian mark; 14.5cm wide. Estimate HK$ 50,000 - 100,000 (€4,800 - 9,600). Sold for HK$ 56,250 (€ 5,933). Photo courtesy Bonhams

Well potted on a splayed foot, the compressed globular body rising to a everted rim, flanked at the sides with a pair of lion head finials, under a thick white glaze, the base impressed with a four-characterzhuanshu seal mark. 

Provenance 來源: Fran and Dick Berry collection, Melbourne.

Note: The impressed four-character zhuanshu seal mark on the underside of the current lot is rare. The only other known example is an identical Dehua incense burner in the Chongqing Museum, accession no.CB71215. Compare also another similar example with incised Chenghua six-character Imperial kaishu mark in the British Museum, illustrated by Jessica Rawson, The British Museum Book of Chinese Art, London, 1992, p.248, no.185. 

Bonhams. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS AND WORKS OF ART. Hong Kong. 24 Nov 2013 14:00 CST