A `DING' PERSIMMON-GLAZED CONICAL BOWL NORTHERN SONG DYNASTY

of elegant tapering conical form upon a short foot, covered in a rich persimmon glaze, thining at the rim to reveal the white body

The bowl is in overall good condition with the exception of: three areas of rubbing to the glaze (ca. 1.5-2.5cm) on the interior of the rim. It has very light overall rubbing and few minor scratches to the glaze.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

It is rare to find a 'Ding' bowl of this elegant form and exquisite glaze colour. Although persimmon-glazed bowls were made by many northern kilns during the Song dynasty in China, the striking near-white body exposed at the foot and equally visible through the glaze at the rim, are distinctive of the 'Ding' kilns which made the finest and rarest examples.

A similar bowl can be found in the Illustrated Catalogue of Tokyo National Museum. Chinese Ceramics, vol.1, Tokyo, 1988, cat. no. 368; and a related russet 'Ding' bowl of lobed conical form, in the Chang Foundation, Taipei, is illustrated in James Spencer, Selected Chinese Ceramics from Han to Qing Dynasties, Taipei, 1990, pl. 28. Compare also a bowl in the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., published in Oriental Ceramics. The World's Great Collections, vol. 9, Tokyo, 1981, pl. 62.   

It is interesting to compare a persimmon-glazed bowl from the Scheinman collection, of very similar form but with the more common darker stoneware body used by other northern kilns, included in the exhibition Hare's Fur, Tortoiseshell, and Partridge Feathers: Chinese Brown and Black Glazed Ceramics, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, Mass., 1995, cat. no. 20, where it is attributed to the 'Yaozhou' kilns located at Huangpuzhen, Tongchan, Shaanxi province. The exhibition also included three 'Ding' bowls of conical form from the Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Harvard University, with persimmon-coloured, splashed black and tea-dust brown glazes, respectively, ibid., cat. nos. 15, 16 and 18.

See also two closely related bowls sold in these rooms, one from the Muwen Tang collection, 12^th November 2003, lot 9, and the other, 13^th November 2002, lot 84. Another bowl of this type and of the same size was sold in our New York rooms, 30^th March 2006, lot 22.