Lot 1454. A rare wucai 'Dragon' dish, Wanli six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle and of the period (1573-1619); 12½ in. (31.8 cm.) diam. Estimate USD 115,000 - USD 25,000. Price realised USD 43,750. © Christie's Image Ltd 2013. 

The dish has shallow rounded sides that rise to an everted rim and is decorated in the interior with a dragon supporting a basket of peaches flanked by two dragons holding wan emblems below two further dragons mutually holding a lotus blossom above a flame-encircled shou medallion. All are within a bracket-lobed reserve below four cartouches of flying phoenixes reserved on an underglaze blue wan-diaper ground, and the exterior is painted in underglaze blue with eight flower sprays, box.

Provenance: T.T. Tsui Collection, Hong Kong.

Note: A related Wanli-marked dish decorated with an ascending dragon supporting a similar basin and surrounded by four further dragons within a bracket-lobed panel in the interior is included in the Illustrated Catalogue of Tokyo National Museum, Chinese Ceramics II, 1990, no. 344.

Christie's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, New York, 21 - 22 March 2013