Lot 8057. A Longquan celadon ribbed meiping and cover, 12th-13th century; 8 1/4in (21cm) high. Estimate US$ 20,000 - 30,000 (€18,000 - 27,000). Sold for US$ 50,000 (€ 40,610). Photo: Bonhams.

The elongated ovoid body with fine concentric ribs on the exterior beneath the neck tapering inwards, the interior and exterior all covered with a rich bluish-green glaze covering the foot around the slightly recessed unglazed base, the cover similarly ribbed and glazed. 

Provenance: Sotheby's New York, 21/22 September 2005, lot 312

Note: The fine concentric horizontal ribs of the present lot are perfectly designed to exhibit the attractive pooling effect and deepening color of the distinctive bluish-green Longquan glaze: this can be contrasted with ribbed Cizhou meiping, whose vertical ribs highlight the pleasing properties of the cream and dark slip decoration. 

It is rare for a cover to survive with the vase, but another meiping and cover was excavated in 1979 from a tomb in Songyangxian dated to AD 1195: see Zhu Boqian, Longquan yao qingci, Taipei, 1998, p. 123, no. 88. Compare also two ribbed meiping with covers in the collection of the Longquan Celadon Museum, Zhejiang, and illustrated Longquan Celadon of China, 1998, nos. 90 and 91. 

Bonhams. CHINESE PAINTINGS AND WORKS OF ART, 14 Sep 2015 10:00 EDT , NEW YORK