Lot 1373. A pair of glazed bowls with cut-out decoration, 18th century; 4 3/16 in. (10.7 cm.) diam. Estimate USD 4,000 - USD 6,000. Price realised USD 11,250. © Christie's Images Ltd 2013

Each has deep, rounded sides that flare towards the rim and are decorated with a delicately cut-out band of flower sprays, and covered overall with a clear glaze of pale blue-green tint that fills in the cut-out design and ends in a neat line on the foot. An apocryphal Xuande mark is on the base.

Note: Very similar cut-out decoration can be seen on two bowls of this type, of larger size and with Qianlong seal marks: one illustrated in Selected Porcelains of the Flourishing Qing Dynasty at the Palace Museum, Beijing, 1994, p. 362, pl. 99; the other sold at Christie's New York, 22 March 2013, lot 1501.