Lot 748. A blue and white 'Figural' sleeve vase, Transitional period, circa 1640-1650. Height 17 3/8  in., 44.1 cm. Estimate 20,000 — 25,000 USD. Lot sold 52,500 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.

the cylindrical body finely painted in varying tones of underglaze blue with a continuous highly animated scene depicting a group of armed men giving chase over rocky terrain to a soldier, fleeing over water on the back of mythical tortoise, observed from a distance by a pair of compatriots smiling at the escape of their comrade, all amid rocky promontories enclosed within swirling clouds, the short, waisted neck encircled with an upright band of lappets.

Provenance: Collection of John Pullan (1915-1995).
Spink, London, 1998.

Exhibited: Chinese Blue & White Porcelain from the Pullan Collection, Spink, London, 1998, cat. no. 17.