Lot 68. A Longquan celadon-glazed 'dragon' dish, 14th century. 35cm (13 6/8in) diam. Estimate £4,000 - 6,000. Sold for £9,375 (€10,608). Photo: Bonhams.

Well potted, the rounded sides rising from a tapered foot to an everted rim, crisply moulded to the interior with a writhing dragon with scaly body and muscular legs terminating in sharp claws, all encircled by a carved stylised foliate scroll, the exterior moulded with lappets, covered overall in a sea-green glaze.

Provenance: Francesco Maria, Marchese Taliani de Marchio (1887 - 1968), Grand Officer of the Italian Crown, Commander of the Order of St Maurice and Lazarus, and Commander of the Order of Pius IX (Ordine Piano), and his wife Archduchess Maragaretha d'Austria Toscana, Marchesa Taliani de Marchio (1894 – 1986). 

Note: Compare with a similar Longquan celadon 'dragon' dish, Yuan dynasty, illustrated by B.Gyllensvard, Chinese Ceramics in the Karl Kempe Collection, Stockholm, 1965, pl.144. Another example sold at Sotheby's, London, 25 November 2015, lot 248.

A Chinese 'Longquan' celadon dish, Yuan dynasty. Sold for 16,250 GBP at Sotheby's, London, 25 November 2015, lot 248. Photo: Sotheby's.

Cf. my post: A Chinese 'Longquan' celadon dish, Yuan dynasty