Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics And Works Of Art, New York, 18 March 2008
Qianlong Monochrome sold at Sotheby's New York, 18 March 2008
Lot 123. A Flambé-Glazed Vase, Fanghu, Qianlong Incised Seal Mark and Period (1736-1795); height 11 3/8 in., 29 cm. Estimate 15,000 — 20,000 USD. Lot sold 15,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.
the swelling body of rectangular section, with slightly waisted vertical neck, front and back molded with a 'peach'-form panel, the neck flanked by twin lug handles, all on a conforming low foot, the body with a flowing glaze of ox-blood red, lilac-blue and purple, thinning to ivory at the extremities, the underside with a mottled transparent café-au-lait glaze, wood stand and Japanese wood box (3).
Lot 150. A Fine Blue-glazed pear-shaped vase, yuhuchunping, Qianlong Seal mark and period (1736-1795); height 12 in., 30.5 cm. Estimate 60,000 — 80,000 USD. Lot sold 67,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.
well-potted with a generously swelling body tapering to a narrow neck, culminating in a broad everted mouth rim, supported on a short flared foot, the exterior with a bubble-suffused deep-blue glaze stopping evenly at the foot, the interior and recessed base with white glaze.
Note: Compare a similar Qianlong vase sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 27th April 2003, lot 168; a slightly larger blue-glazed vase of this form, also with a Qianlong reign mark and of the period, sold in these rooms, 31st May 1989, lot 180; and a third related example from the Jinguantang collection of T.T. Tsui, sold at Christie's London, 5th November 1997, lot 863.
See also a vase of this elegant form but with a Yongzheng reign mark, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, included in the exhibition Qingdai danse you ciqi tezhan, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1981, cat.no. 37; and another Yongzheng example from the British Rail Pension Fund sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 16th May 1989, lot 52, and again at Christie's Hong Kong, 2nd November 1999, lot 585.
Lot 151. A Fine Copper-Red Vase, meiping, Qianlong Seal Mark and Period (1736-1795); height 11 1/4 in., 28.6 cm. Estimate 100,000 — 150,000 USD. Lot sold 109,000 USD. Courtesy Sotheby's.
finely potted with pronounced shoulders tapering to a slightly flared foot, the neck curved outward at the rounded mouth rim, applied overall with a lustrous red glaze thinning at the mouth and pooling to a deeper tone at the foot, the interior and the recessed base glazed white.
Provenance: Collection of Professor Ross Edman.
Sotheby's New York, 23rd September 1995, lot 426.
Note: The use of copper-red glaze at Jingdezhen was revived by the Kangxi emperor after the decline in usage during the late 15th, 16th and early 17th centuries. With the effort to reproduce classic Ming sacrificial-red (jihong) porcelains, Qing copper-red pieces quickly outnumbered their Ming counterparts. Nigel Wood in Chinese Glazes, London, 1999, p. 180, notes how the French Jesuit missionary, Pere Francois D'Entrecolles (b. 1664-1741) wrote letters giving detailed accounts of the copper-red production at Jingdezhen, the sourcing of the copper for the glaze, the recipes and the kiln location of the firing of these wares. D'Entrecolles was aware of the difficulties involved in the making of copper-red wares and his account confirms the high level of technical knowledge of the potters at Jingdezhen. Although copper-red pieces can be readily found from the Kangxi and Yongzheng periods, by Qianlong's reign they become fewer in number.
Qianlong meiping in copper-red glaze are rare, although a small number are recorded, ranging between 9 and 12.5 inches in height. See a slightly smaller meiping in the Roemer Museum, Hildesheim, also with a Qianlong reign mark and of the period, illustrated in Ulrich Wiesner, Chinesisches Porzellan, Mainz am Rhein, 1981, pl. 99; and another sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 10th April 2006, lot 1521. Another smaller example, from the Jingguantang collection, was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 5th November 1997, lot 864; and a larger vase of this form and glaze, from the collection of Professor Ross Edman, was sold in these rooms, 23rd September 1995, lot 426.
For earlier examples see a Kangxi copper-red glazed meiping illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Monochrome Porcelain, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 21, together with a larger Yongzheng example, pl. 24.