Lot 733. A rare Dingyao incised 'Daylily' deep bowl, Northern Song dynasty, 11th-12th century; 5 3/8 in. (13.7 cm.) diam. Estimate $220,000 - USD 300,000. Price Realized $245,000. © Christie’s Image Ltd 2014

The bowl is finely potted with deep, rounded sides rising from a flat base to a lipped rim. The interior is freely carved with daylily blossoms borne on graceful, leafy stems, and the bowl is covered inside and out with a transparent ivory glaze stopping at the unglazed mouth rim to reveal the fine, white body, wood box. 

Provenance: Baron Fujita Family Collection, Japan, acquired in the early 20th century.

Note: The present bowl is exceptionally well carved with freely rendered daylilies. Compare to several Ding vessels bearing this design, including a basin of larger size from the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Catalogue of the Special Exhibition of Ting Ware White Porcelain, Taipei, 1987, no. 28; a conical bowl from the Linyushanren Collection, included in The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics: An Exhibition of Song Treasures from the Linyushanren Collection, Hong Kong, 2012, no. 1; and a larger basin, also from the Linyushanren Collection, ibid., no. 9.

Christie’s. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS AND WORKS OF ART, 18 – 19 September 2014, New York, Rockefeller Plaza.