Page 10 - Sotheby's New York Linyushanren Part IV Auction September 13, 2018

beneath the black slip as they revealed the background. Two of the
vases in the current sale are of a classic trumpet-mouth shape, which
is often associated with vases decorated in this technique, and are
also both decorated with bold peony scrolls, which are perhaps the
most frequent choice of foral motif on these wares. It is possible
that these two trumpet-mouthed vases were made at the Guantai
kiln site as the shape is found amongst those excavated at the site
(see The Cizhou Kiln site at Guantai, op. cit., colour plate IX, no. 2),
while a considerable number of sherds of vessels decorated using the
technique – some clearly including the same decorative scheme –
have also been excavated at Guantai (see ibid., colour plate XXI,
no. 2). A more unusual form and decorative scheme can be seen
on lot 827 in the current sale. On this famous high-sided, almost
cylindrical fat-based vessel it is the dark areas which predominate,
and the large petals in the main decorative band are especially bold
with broad areas of black on either side of the broad white bands.
The fnely incised triangular details alternately in the upper and lower
black sections provide an effective contrast to these dramatic black
and white petals.
The other decorative technique which produced bold black and
white designs on Cizhou wares involved painting black or dark
brown designs onto the white slip and then applying a colourless,
transparent green or transparent turquoise glaze. This technique
allowed the ceramic artist to use a brush and to achieve fuency
and effects close to ink painting. Several vessels in the current sale
are decorated using this technique - lots 815, 830, 831, 835, 837
and 841. Painted designs – both abstract and representational - had
been applied to Chinese ceramics as early as the Neolithic period.
The earliest of these came from the Yangshao culture 仰韶文化,
which fourished in Henan, Shanxi and Shaanxi around 5000-3000
Lot 827 BC. Alongside abstract motifs, the Yangshao ceramic decorators
拍品827號 incorporated fsh, animals, plants and even occasionally human
fgures into their designs. Underglaze painted decoration appeared on
Chinese ceramics at least as early as the 3rd century AD. Evidence
so far suggests that the earliest underglaze painting on ceramics
appears under celadon glazes. A celadon-glazed lidded jar, which
was excavated from the Hebiji 鶴壁集 kiln site in Henan province in dates to the 3rd century AD, during the Three Kingdoms period,
1963 (illustrated by Zhang Bai in Complete Collection of Ceramic Art was excavated in the suburbs of Nanjing in 1983 (see Zhongguo
Unearthed in China, 12, Henan, Beijing, 2008, p. 180, no. 180). The wenwu jinghua daquan – taoci juan, 中國文物精華大全 – 陶瓷卷, Taibei,
excavated bowl is inscribed with the four characters 劉家磁器 Liu jia 1993, p. 196, no. 50). This jar has sprig-moulded reliefs applied
ci qi (porcelain made by the Liu family). A further bowl of this type, to its shoulders, which include representations of the Buddha, and
with a separate band of decoration around the interior sides – as on underglaze painted decoration which includes immortals amongst
lot 812 in the current sale, was excavated in 1998 from a shipwreck the clouds. In the Tang dynasty underglaze painting was applied to
found near a wharf on the Grand Canal in Dongguang county 東光 ceramics from various kiln sites. Several celadon-glazed items with
縣, Hebei province (illustrated by Zhang Bai in Complete Collection underglaze painting from this period are known including a censer
of Ceramic Art Unearthed in China, 3, Hebei, Beijing, 2008, p. 132, with cover and stand, excavated in 1980 from a tomb dated to AD
no. 132). 901 at Linru, and a large lidded jar, excavated from the same site (see
ibid., p. 229, no. 181 and p. 231, no. 187, respectively). While all the
A number of decorative techniques which produced bold black and celadon-glazed examples appear to be decorated using iron oxide, the
white designs were applied to Cizhou wares and are represented best known of the Tang underglaze painted wares are those from the
amongst the vessels in the current sale. Two of these techniques Changsha kilns, at which the underglaze painted designs were applied
appear, at frst sight, to achieve similar results but closer inspection in both iron oxide and copper oxide. The painting subjects on the
reveals signifcant differences. One of these techniques involves Changsha wares were very diverse, including human fgures, fowers,
so-called sgraffato. The buff-coloured body of the vessel was covered birds, plants, buildings and calligraphy. The third medium used to
in white slip, allowed to dry and then covered in black or dark paint underglaze designs in the Tang dynasty was cobalt blue, which
brown slip. After the second layer of slip had also dried, the outline was applied to a relatively small group of white wares, probably at
of the decoration was incised through the black slip, and then the the Gongxian kilns, creating both abstract and foral designs (see R.
black slip was cut away from the background, leaving the white slip Scott, ‘A Remarkable Tang Dynasty Cargo’, Transactions of the Oriental
beneath intact. The item was then covered in a thin glaze – usually Ceramic Society, vol. 67, 2002-2003, p. 14, fgs. 1-5).
colourless, but sometimes copper green. In the current sale this
technique can be seen on lots 809, 819, 821, and 827. This was an The ceramic decorators at the Cizhou kilns were the heirs to this
extremely diffcult and time consuming decorative technique as the tradition of underglaze painting and took it to a new level. With
craftsmen had to ensure that they did not cut away the white slip a dense white slip ground and the dense black/dark brown used

8 Masterpieces of Cizhou Ware: The Linyushanren Collection, Part IV 磁州窯集珍：古韻天成-臨宇山人珍藏（四）