Lot 898. An incised white-glazed soft-paste 'Twin fish' dish, 17th century; 27.6 cm diam., cloth box. Price realised USD 8,820 (Estimate: USD 5,000 – USD 7,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2023.

Provenance: Samuel T. Peters (1854-1912) Collection.
J. J. Lally & Co., New York, no. 4335.

Note: The motif of twin fish on the present dish looks back to Song-dynasty versions that were produced with celadon glazes. An emblem of harmony, it is symbolic of "connubial felicity." A smaller soft-paste white porcelain dish incised with twin fish in waves is illustrated by J. Ayers in The Baur Collection, Geneva: Chinese Ceramics, vol. 3, Monochrome: Glazed Porcelain of the Ch’ing Dynasty, Geneva, 1972, no. A429, described as “imitating Sung Ting ware”.

Christie's. J. J. Lally & Co., New York, 23 march 2023