Lot 900. A Magnificent Langyao Baluster Vase, Guanyin Zun, Kangxi Period (1662-1722), 44.5 cm high, gilt metal stand. Price realised USD 567,000 (Estimate: USD120,000-180,000). © Christie's Images Ltd 2023.

The tall vase is of baluster form with high rounded shoulders surmounted by a short neck and flared mouth, and is covered with a rich, translucent glaze of brilliant raspberry-red tone. The rim and the interior are glazed white and the slightly recessed, flat base is covered with an oatmeal-colored glaze.

Provenance: Mr. and Mrs. John E. (1813-1904) Berwind, and by descent from Edward Julius Berwind (1848-1936), Newport, Rhode Island.
Skinner's Boston, 21 October 2006, lot 395.
J. J. Lally & Co., New York, no. 4295.

Note: The term langyao (lang ware), derives its name from Lang Tingji, director of the official kilns at Jingdezhen between 1705-1712, who is credited with the revival of monochrome glazes and particularly copper-red glazes. The copper-red color is often considered the most challenging to regulate during the firing process as exactly the right conditions are required within the kiln to achieve the rich tones demonstrated by the present lot. Although copper-red was used successfully in the Ming dynasty, particularly in the Xuande period, the copper-red monochrome glazes seen in the Qing dynasty became even more refined and were of an exceptionally even and vibrant tone. The fine glaze and elegant form of the present vase exemplifies the skill of the Chinese potters under Lang Tingji.

The shape of the current vase, which is sometimes referred to as a ‘Guanyin vase’, is characteristic of lang wares. Compare two langyao vases of similar shape, one in the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - 37- Monochrome Porcelain, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 18, no. 15, and another in the collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Catalogue of A Special Exhibition of Ch’ing Dynasty Monochrome Porcelains in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1981, p. 37, no. 1. See, also, another example in the Yale University Art Gallery, Illustrated by S. Lee in Selected Far Eastern Art in the Yale University Art Gallery, New Haven, 1970, p. 175, no. 349.

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