Lot 709. A blue and white moulded 'Immortals' Bowl, Wanli period (1573-1619); 7 1/8 in. (18.3 cm.) diam. Estimate GBP 5,000 - GBP 7,000. Price realised GBP 6,875. © Christie's Image Ltd 2015

The bowl is moulded with eight lobes, each depicting one of the Eight Immortals, baxian, above a band of foaming waves. The concave interior is decorated with a roundel enclosing a scholar beneath a pine tree. The base has a yong bao chang chun mark in a coin, which may be translated as 'May your youthfulness be eternal'.

Provenance: With certificate of identity from The Curios Furniture & Miscellaneous Utensils & Hardware Merchants & Employees Association, Hong Kong & Kowloon, 13 December 1969.
The property of a private European collector, assembled in Hong Kong and Indonesia in the 1950s and 1960s.

Christie's. Chinese Ceramics, Works of Art and Textiles, London, South Kensington, 15 May 2015