Lot 3636. An exquisitely enamelled wucai boneless 'Butterflies and asters' cup, Mark and period of Kangxi (1662-1722);  6.4 cm., 2 1/2  in. Estimate 4,000,000 — 6,000,000 HKD (459,824 — 689,736 EUR). Lot sold 4,880,000 HKD (560,985 EUR). Photo: Sotheby's

superbly potted with rounded sides rising to a slightly flaring rim, elegantly enamelled on the exterior with bright yellow asters borne on a leafy sprig, accompanied by three flying butterflies detailed with various colours and patterns, the countersunk base inscribed in underglaze blue with a six-character reign mark enclosed within a double-square, wood stand.

Provenance: Collection of Iver Munthe Daae.
S. Marchant & Son Ltd., London.
Sotheby's Hong Kong, 8th October 2010, lot 2604.

Exhibited: Recent Acquisitions 2003, S. Marchant and Son Ltd., London, 2003, cat. no. 4.

Notes: Exquisitely decorated with finely enamelled butterflies in flight and delicately rendered flowers, cups of this design are rare; see a closely related example in the Shanghai Museum, Shanghai, illustrated in Kangxi Porcelain Wares from the Shanghai Museum Collection, Hong Kong, 1998, pls. 93.1-3; and another sold in our London rooms, 9th June 2004, lot 216.

This cup is a fine example of the developments in painting during the early Qing dynasty, where wash and colour were beginning to be emphasised over line. Known as the 'boneless style', this painting technique is characterised by the virtual lack of outlines. The only lines in the entire composition are those rendering the veins on the leaves and wings of the butterflies. This technique was rarely used on porcelain. For further examples of butterfly and flower decorated cups employing the 'boneless style', see a pair with a Kangxi reign mark and of the period, sold in our New York rooms, 8th May 1980, lot 249; and an example of Yongzheng mark and period, from the J.M. Hu Family Collection, sold in these rooms, 11th April 2008, lot 2832.

Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art Hong Kong, 07 Oct 2015