Lot 1050. A carved 'Cizhou' jar, Ming dynasty (1368-1644). Height 7 in., 17.8 cm. Estimate $3,000 - $5,000. Sold: $5,625. © Sotheby's

of baluster form rising from a gently flared foot to broad rounded shoulders and a straight neck, the sides carved through the light brown glaze to the buff body beneath, with a composite floral scroll with each flower head enclosing a single character forming the phrase Junzi ai cai (the gentleman loves wealth), below a keyfret band around the shoulders and ruyi lappets around the base.

Provenance: Birmingham Museum of Art, Birmingham, Alabama, 1988-2015 (on loan).

Sotheby's. Saturday at Sotheby's: Asian Art, New York, 18 March 2017