A blue glazed bottle vase with incised decoration, Ming dynasty, 16th century. Photo Bonhams

Thickly molded with a rolled rim to the short, waisted neck, the elongated ovoid body incised with a pattern of lotus plants in bloom beneath a rich cobalt blue glaze of fahua type covering the exterior walls and stopping neatly along the canted edge of the unglazed base, the interior of the neck covered with turquoise enamel. 14 1/2in (37cm) high. Estimate US$ 4,000 - 6,000 (€2,900 - 4,400)

Provenance: ex-collection Edward H. Bennett, Chicago, Illinois
Nathan Bentz & Co., San Francisco and Santa Barbara, California, by repute

Notes: For two vases of similar size and shape in the Qing Court Collection, each with floral decoration rendered in brightly hued fahua enamels, see Complete Treasures of the Palace Museum, Zayoucai, Susancai (Miscellaneous Porcelains, Plain Colored Porcelains), 2009, cat. nos. 193 and 194, pp. 242-245, each as Jiajing period (63.4 and 60cm high). For a similarly glazed cobalt jar of fahua type from the collection of J.T. Tai & Co., see Sotheby's, New York, Sale 8722, 22 March 2011, lot 93.

Bonhams. FINE CHINESE WORKS OF ART, San Francisco, 24 Jun 2014 10:00 - http://www.bonhams.com/