A FINE AND RARE COPPER-RED DOUBLE-GOURD VASE QING DYNASTY, KANGXI PERIOD

superbly potted, the upper globular bulb rising to a short neck, supported on a larger similarly-shaped compressed spherical bulb, elegantly painted with gourd flowers and attendant fruits amidst curling tendrils, the veining of the petals and leaves lightly incised in the body, the copper-red of an even bright burgundy tone, the countersunk base unglazed

Mrs. Alfred Clarke, London.
Sotheby's London, Important Ming Porcelain, 24th March 1953, lot 27. 

The overall condition is very good. The copper-red is even throughout with flecks of green. There is a burst air bubble on the inside of the mouth, but is not visible on the exterior.
"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."

Gourd-shaped vases with this design of flowering and fruiting gourd vines are known both painted in underglaze-red and underglaze-blue. Since they are painted in a particularly beautiful soft style that is strongly reminiscent of early Ming porcelain, their dating has been much discussed and the date here proposed is on the cautious side. Underglaze-red decoration, after having been mastered in the Yongle and Xuande period, was almost completely discontinued thereafter, but revived again in the Kangxi reign.

A very similar vase from collection of Edward T. Chow was included in A Loan Exhibition of One Hundred Selected Masterpieces, organized by the Nihon Keizai Shimbunsha at Takashimaya, Osaka, 1961, cat. no. 63, where it was attributed to the Ming dynasty, and sold in these rooms 19th May 1981, lot 541 (as 17^th century); another from the N.V. Hammer and John D. Rockefeller 3rd collections was sold at Christie's New York, 15th September 2009, lot 426 (as Kangxi/Yongzheng period or earlier).

An identical vase painted in cobalt-blue is attributed to the Jiajing period in Geng Baochang, ed., Gugong Bowuyuan cang gu taoci ciliao xuancui [Selection of ancient ceramic material from the Palace Museum], Beijing, 2005, vol.1, pl. 146; another blue-painted piece from the collection of Mr and Mrs Walter Sedgwick, is published in William Bowyer Honey, The Ceramic Art of China and Other Countries of the Far East, London, 1945, pl. 95 (b) as Zhengde period; and one in the British Museum, London, is included among the Xuande wares in Jessica Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, no. 4: 18 (fig. 1).