Page 326 - 2019 September 11th Sotheby's Important Chinese Art

899
PROPERTY OF AN ASIAN PRIVATE COLLECTOR 清康熙 五彩錦鯉化龍圖抱月瓶
A VERY RARE FAMILLE-VERTE
‘DRAGON-CARP’ MOONFLASK 來源
QING DYNASTY, KANGXI PERIOD John Sparks Ltd.，倫敦 ( 傳 )
英國私人收藏
elegantly potted with a flattened spherical body
rising to a waisted neck and a pear-shaped
upper bulb, set with two strap handles each
accentuated by a central raised ridge and a
leaf-shaped terminal, the convex circular sides
each painted with a carp leaping from the
turbulent sea and a dragon springing forth from
crashing waves, the upper bulb decorated with
the ‘Eight Buddhist Emblems’
Height 10¼ in., 26 cm
PROVENANCE
John Sparks Ltd., London (by repute).
English Private Collection.
The distinctive shape of this vase is thought to
have been inspired by Near or Middle Eastern
metalware, while the ceramic form was first
produced during Yongle and Xuande periods.
The moonflask shape is highly unusual in the
Kangxi period.
The form is recorded in a line drawing in Geng
Baochang, Mingqing ciqi jiangding [Appraisal
of Ming and Qing Porcelain], Hong Kong, 1993,
p. 189, no. fig. 336, no. 3. For a closely related
piece, see Geng Baochang, ibid., p. 21, fig. 31.
Compare a related example decorated with
chrysanthemum in iron red, sold at Christie’s
New York, 30th October 2001, lot 801. Another
example with two lugs below the handles,
painted with deer motifs in underglaze blue,
was sold in these rooms, 3rd December 1974,
lot 458.
$ 30,000-50,000

324 SOTHEBY’S IMPORTANT CHINESE ART