Lot 105. A fine blue and white 'trigram' bowl, Mark and period of Kangxi (1662-1722). Diameter 12.2 cm. Lot Sold 102,400 USD (Estimate 30,000 - 50,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

the base with a six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle.

Provenance: Collection of Emil (1870-1948) and Jenny (b. 1880) Baerwald, by 1929.

Collection of Paul Baerwald (1871-1961).

J. Post, New York.

Sotheby's London, 17th December 1980, lot 654.

The Goldschmidt Collection.

Sotheby's Hong Kong, 13th November 1990, lot 6.

Exhibited: Ausstellung chinesischer Kunst [Exhibition of Chinese Art], Prussian Academy of Arts, Berlin, 1929, cat. no. 812.

An Exhibition of the Paul Baerwald Collection of Chinese Porcelain: Rare Monochromes, Blue and White, and Other Porcelains of the Sung, Ming and Chʼing Dynasties, John Sparks, London, 1937, cat. no. 52.

Oosterse Schatten, 4000 Jaar Aziatische Kunst [Eastern Shadows: 4,000 Years of Asian Art], Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 1954, cat. no. 286.

Note : The finely potted body and luminous glaze of this bowl exemplify the extraordinary technical refinement achieved at the imperial kilns in Jingdezhen during the Kangxi period (1662-1722), when advances in clay formulation, glaze clarity, and cobalt control allowed for unprecedented precision and elegance. The painted trigram motifs derive from the Yijing (Book of Changes), a foundational text that informed cosmological thinking at the Qing court. While Confucian statecraft remained paramount, Daoist concepts of harmony, transformation, and the dynamic balance of yin and yang continued to permeate imperial ideology and artistic expression. Such symbols, discreetly incorporated into court wares, reflect the Qing emperors’ intellectual engagement with Daoism and their interest in aligning imperial authority with the ordered rhythms of the natural world.

Bowls of this type are rare. A closely related example was formerly in the collection of Alfred Edward Hippisley (1848–1939), acquired in China between 1876 and 1884, later sold by J.J. Lally to the Freer Gallery of Art in 1995, and now preserved in the National Museum of Asian Art, Washington, D.C. (accession no. F1995.8), where it is published on the Museum’s website. Compare also a pair from an old Hong Kong family collection, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 25th November 2022, lot 301; and a single bowl from a European private collection, sold at Christie’s New York, 18th September 2015, lot 2233.

Lot 106. A fine blue and white 'trigram' bowl, Mark and period of Kangxi (1662-1722). Diameter 12.4 cm. Lot Sold 64,000 USD (Estimate 30,000 - 50,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

the base with a six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle.

Provenance: Sotheby's Hong Kong, 13th November 1990, lot 212.

Lot 115. A fine and exceedingly rare blue and white Ming-style 'flower' vase, Mark and period of Yongzheng (1723-1735). Height 16.1 cm. Lot Sold 832,000 USD (Estimate 400,000 - 600,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

the base with a six-character mark in underglaze blue within a double circle.

Provenance: 38.3 cmSotheby's Hong Kong, 1st November 1994, lot 139 (offered).

Private Collection.

Christie's Hong Kong, 31st October 2000, lot 884

Note: Its luminous white body providing a pristine ground for the finest cobalt decoration, the present vase is an exemplary relic of the Yongzheng kilns. More typically found on larger scale commissions, the present decorative scheme is applied with extraordinary control and fluency: scrolling flowers of the four seasons unfold rhythmically across its rounded body, their delicately shaded petals and leaves revealing a painterly sensitivity more often associated with ink on silk than pigment on porcelain. The balance between form and ornament is similarly masterful: the swelling lower body anchors the design, while the flaring neck, encircled by a band of upright lappets, introduces a measured verticality. The result is a vessel of poised restraint and subtle richness, whose beauty lies not in excess, but in precision, harmony, and clarity of intention.

The vase speaks directly to the Yongzheng Emperor’s deep engagement with archaism and his reverence for the porcelains of the Ming dynasty. During his reign (1723–1735), imperial taste was guided by a scholarly impulse to recover, reinterpret, and refine classical models, particularly the blue and white pieces of the Yongle (1403–1424) and Xuande (1426–1435) reigns. Antique defects such as ‘heaping and piling’ – the initially unintentional spotting of early cobalt pigments – had become a much celebrated feature of the Ming treasures preserved in the Yongzheng court and, in a conspicuous nod to his predecessors’ reign, the Yongzheng Emperor sought to replicate these effects, injected with the technical mastery of the eighteenth century. Intentionally adding uneven dottings of underglaze blue across the floral designs and formal bands of the present vase, the imperial craftsmen were able to produce a rich variegated surface, akin to the finest Yongle and Xuande wares. 

However, rather than simple imitation, Yongzheng wares are also characterized by a conscious process of distillation— paring back forms and motifs to their essential qualities while elevating technical refinement to unprecedented levels. The present vase reflects this aesthetic philosophy: its floral decoration recalls Ming prototypes in both subject and compositional density, yet the palette is more restrained, the brushwork more controlled, and the overall effect one of intellectual elegance rather than exuberance. Such works embody the Yongzheng ideal of harmony between past and present, tradition and innovation.

With its compressed globular body rising to a tall, gently flaring neck, the enchanting form of the present vase is also noteworthy. Perhaps best described simply as a zun, the form appears to be all but unique to the Yongzheng period where it was reproduced in a number of variations. While scholarship remains unclear as to the origins of this form, some have proposed a continuum with flared waterpots of the Kangxi period known as taibaizun (‘beehive waterpots’) or contemporaneous vases derived from treasure pouch forms. Compare a Yongzheng Ge-type vase of pouch form in Gugong Bowuyuan cang Qingdai yuyao ciqi, vol. 1, pt. 2, Beijing, 2005, pl. 16; and another in the Nanjing Museum, in Treasures in the Royalty. The Official Kiln Porcelain of the Chinese Qing Dynasty, Shanghai, 2003, p. 193. 

Surviving examples of this form decorated in blue-and-white are exceptionally rare with only one other vase apparently attested. The vase, preserved since its inception in the Qing Court Collection at the Palace Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in Geng Baochang, ed., Gugong Bowuyuan cang Qingdai yuyao ciqi [Porcelains from the Qing dynasty imperial kilns in the Palace Museum collection], Beijing, 2005, vol. 1, pt. 2, pl. 177. 

For other market example wares of exemplary Yongzheng wares featuring similar floral scrolls and mastery of Ming imitation, compare the bottle vase from the collection of Charles Anderson Dana (1819-1897), sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 22nd April 2021, lot 3609; the flask from the Tianminlou Collection sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 30th November 2023, lot 2711; and another of related design from the Koger Collection, sold at Christie’s New York, 19th September 2025, lot 1019.

Lot 116. A rare and large blue and white 'lotus and bat' dish, Seal mark and period of Daoguang (1820-1850). Diameter 38.3 cm. Lot Sold 48,640 USD (Estimate 8,000 - 12,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

the base with a six-character seal mark in underglaze blue.

Provenance : Washington, D.C. Private Collection.

Note: Large Daoguang blue and white dishes of this form and design are extremely rare. While the Daoguang court consciously paid homage to earlier imperial traditions, particularly those of the Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong reigns, it also sought to reinterpret established models through subtle adjustments. The present dish exemplifies this balance between reverence for the past and creative adaptation, combining a classical format with a distinctly contemporary sensibility. Its ambitious scale and refined painting quality further distinguishes it within the context of Daoguang blue and white production, a period otherwise marked by a preference for more conservative approaches. For another example of this type, see a dish offered at Christie’s Hong Kong, 8th October 1990, lot 580.

Lot 191. Property from the Collection of David H. Murdock. A blue and white 'figural' beaker vase, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 44.7 cm. Lot sold 14,080 USD (Estimate 6,000 - 8,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

the base with an Artemisia leaf in underglaze blue.

Provenance : Sotheby's London, 18th November 1980, lot 11 (part lot).

Lot 192. Property from the Collection of David H. Murdock. A blue and white 'figural' baluster vase, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 44.8 cm. Lot sold 24,320 USD (Estimate 10,000 - 15,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

the base with a double circle in underglaze blue.

Provenance : Important Private Collection.

Christie’s London, 13th May 1986, lot 449.

Lot 193. Property from the Collection of David H. Murdock. A blue and white 'figural' handled vase, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 40.6 cm. Lot sold 7,040 USD (Estimate 8,000 - 12,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

Lot 194. Property from the Collection of David H. Murdock. A large blue and white 'ladies' jar, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 46 cm, wood cover (2). Lot sold 5,376 USD (Estimate 6,000 - 8,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

Provenance:: Important Private Collection.

Christie’s London, 13th May 1986, lot 452.

Lot 195. Property from the Collection of David H. Murdock. A blue and white ‘figural’ garlic-neck vase, Ming dynasty, Chongzhen period. Height 36.2 cm. Lot sold 12,800 USD (Estimate 6,000 - 8,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

Provenance:: Important Private Collection.

Christie’s London, 13th May 1986, lot 471.

Lot 196. Property from the Collection of David H. Murdock. A pair of blue and white 'figural' barrel-form jars and covers, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 23 cm. Lot sold 14,080 USD (Estimate 10,000 - 15,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

Provenance : Christie's London, 17th November 1980, lot 18.

Lot 197. Property from the Collection of David H. Murdock. A pair of blue and white 'floral' baluster jars and covers, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 45.5 cm. Lot sold 28,160 USD (Estimate 10,000 - 15,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

Provenance : Earle D. Vandekar, Knightsbridge, Pennsylvania, 29th July 1980.

Lot 198. Property from the Collection of David H. Murdock. A large three-piece blue and white 'floral' garniture, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height of tallest 49 cm. Lot sold 10,880 USD (Estimate 8,000 - 12,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

the base of each with a linghzi in underglaze blue within a double circle (4)

Provenance : Christie's London, 17th November 1980, lot 16.

Lot 251. Property from the Hoover Presidential Foundation. A blue and white 'foliate scroll' baluster-form vase, Qing dynasty, 18th / 19th century. Height 36 cm, wood stand (2). Lot sold 15,360 USD (Estimate 4,000 - 6,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

Provenance: Collection of Jeremiah (1887-1972) and Katherine (1898-1969) Milbank

Lot 252. Property from the Hoover Presidential Foundation. A blue and white 'Four Accomplishments' baluster vase and cover, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 44.3 cm. Lot sold 5,376 USD (Estimate 8,000 - 12,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

the base with a double circle in underglaze blue (2)

Provenance: Collection of Jeremiah (1887-1972) and Katherine (1898-1969) Milbank.

Lot 253. Property from the Hoover Presidential Foundation. A blue and white 'deer and crane' phoenix-tail vase, Qing dynasty, Kangxi period (1662-1722). Height 47.8 cm. Lot sold 8,960 USD (Estimate 10,000 - 15,000 USD) © Sotheby's 2026

the base with a double circle in underglaze blue

Provenance: Collection of Jeremiah (1887-1972) and Katherine (1898-1969) Milbank.

Sotheby's, Chinese Art, New York, 25 March 2026