A FINE AND RARE BLUE AND WHITE STEMCUP MARK AND PERIOD OF XUANDE

the globular body rising from a high domed hollow foot with stepped edge to an incurved broad mouth rim, finely painted in heaped and piled cobalt-blue tones to the interior with a floral medallion and to the exterior with a broad band of leafy scrolling daylilies, all between a lotus lappet band at the base and a chevron band at the rim, the stem with double lines and lotus-lappet and dot bands, the underglaze-blue six-character horizontal mark in the floral section below the rim

Bluett and Sons, London (according to label).

The overall condition is extremely good, except for a couple of short firing cracks on the footring. The actual colour is slightly greyer than the catalogue illustration.
"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."

This stemcup is delicately painted with the vibrant cobalt blue typical of the Xuande period on a form inspired by the archaic ritual bronze dou. Closely related examples can be found in important museums and private collections; see one in the Capital Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Shoudu bowuguan zang ci xuan, Beijing, 1991, pl. 96; one in the British Museum, London, published in Jessica Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, pl. 4:21; one in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, included in Oriental Ceramics. The World's Great Collections, vol. 10, Tokyo, 1980, pl. 219; another from the Sir Percival David Collection in the British Museum, London, ibid., vol. 11, pl. 90; and a fifth example, from the Meiyintang Collection, illustrated in Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, vol. 4, pt. 1, London, 2010, pl. 1651.

For an example with a cover, see one in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, included in the Special Exhibition of Selected Hsuan-te Imperial Porcelains of the Ming Dynasty, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1998, cat. no. 8. See also a fragmentary stembowl of this design with a cover excavated from the waste heaps of the Ming imperial kiln site at Zhushan, Jingdezhen, included in the exhibition Xuande Porcelain Excavated at Jingdezhen, Taipei, 1998, cat. no. 27.