Lot 341. A Longquan celadon handled tripod censer, Yuan-Ming dynasty (1279-1644); d. 11.8 cm, Japanese wood box with a label. Lot Sold 44,450 HKD (Estimate 30,000 - 50,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2023

Lot 342. A Longquan celadon vase, Yuan dynasty (1279-1368); 15.2 cm. Lot Sold 63,500 HKD (Estimate 30,000 - 50,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2023

Provenance: Christie's Hong Kong, 6th October 2015, lot 116.

Lot 343. A small Longquan celadon gu-shaped vase, Yuan dynasty (1279-1368); d. 11.8 cm, Japanese wood box with a label. Lot Sold 165,100 HKD (Estimate 120,000 - 180,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2023

Lot 367. A Junyao blue glazed bowl, Yuan dynasty (1279-1368); d. 19.7 cm. Lot Sold 69,850 HKD (Estimate 26,000 - 30,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2023

Lot 375. Property from a Japanese Private Collection. A Cizhou black-painted 'peony' jar, Yuan dynasty (1279-1368); d. 22.4 cm, Japanese wood box. Lot Sold 82,550 HKD (Estimate 60,000 - 80,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2023

Note: Masterfully and calligraphically executed with carved or painted designs in a subdued palette of blacks, browns and cream, Cizhou wares rank amongst the most recognizable of Song dynasty ceramics. Among the most popular subjects were motifs from flora and fauna relating to contemporaneous literati painting. The minimalistic beauty inherent in Cizhou wares aligns closely with the Japanese wabi-sabi aesthetic, centered on the appreciation of transience and imperfection. Wabi-sabi is also intimately connected with the philosophic principles of Zen Buddhism and the tradition of the tea ceremony.

A similar Yuan-dynasty example also painted with floral motif and a similar decorative band around the neck is in the Taizhou Museum, illustrated in Wang Qingzheng ed., The Complete Works of Chinese Ceramics, vol. 10, Shanghai, 2000, pl. 114. Compare also a Cizhou jar painted with cranes, in a similar spontaneous painting style as the present lot, from the collection of the Tokugawa Art Museum, published in Osaka Municipal Museum of Art, Charm of Black & White Ware; Transition of Cizhou Type Wares, Osaka, 2002, pl. 3-32. This jar was also used as a mizusashi (water jar) in the tea ceremony, with a similar black lacquer cover.

Lot 376. Property from the Alleyne Collection. A moulded qingbai 'peony' hexagonal box, Yuan dynasty and a Dehua 'lotus' box, Ming dynasty; 6 and 13.8 cm. Lot Sold 50,800 HKD (Estimate 40,000 - 60,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2023

Sotheby's. Monochrome, Hong Kong, 1 june 2023