A RARE BLUE AND WHITE TANKARD MARK AND PERIOD OF XUANDE

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the shape following an Islamic metal or jade form, the globular body painted with a flower scroll with alternating lotus and hibiscus blooms between two petal borders, the wide, straight neck partly scalloped and painted with similar petals, separated from the body by a raised rib, the handle with a protruding flange and trefoil terminal showing scrollwork and a small aster spray, the recessed centre of the base inscribed with the six-character reign mark

Collection of Edward T. Chow (around 1950).
Collection of J.M. Hu.
Sotheby's New York, 4th June 1985, lot 2.

Helen D. Ling and E.T. Chow, Collection of Chinese Ceramics from the Pavilion of Ephemeral Attainment, Hong Kong, 1950, vol. 1, pl. 38.
Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, London, 1994-2010, vol. 2, no. 674.

There are short characteristic cracks radiating from the base. There is also a 3 mm flake to the white ring on the shoulder. The overall condition is quite good.
"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."

Tankards of this form and design were made, with minor variations, both in the Yongle and Xuande periods, the former existing also in monochrome white and being always unmarked. Close Islamic metal and jade counterparts are known from the 15th and 16th centuries, but the basic shape might be based on earlier Persian prototypes. A 10th- or 11th-century jug from eastern Iran and four 15th-century examples in bronze, copper and brass are illustrated in Assadullah Souren Melikian-Chirvani, Islamic Metalwork from the Iranian World. 8th-18th Centuries, London, 1982, nos. 8, 109, 113-4, 116, all of which have (or had), however, a ring foot.

A blue and white porcelain tankard of this design, of Xuande mark and period, from the Qing court collection and still in Beijing is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red, Shanghai, 2000, vol. 1, pl. 121; one in the Shanghai Museum in Lu Minghua, Mingdai guanyao ciqi [Ming imperial porcelain], Shanghai, 2007, pl. 3-27. Another tankard from the collection of Mrs. Wright Segelin, sold in our London rooms, 20th February 1968, lot 88 and again in these rooms 14th November 1989, lot 21, is illustrated in Nuno de Castro, A Ceramica e a porcelana Chinesas, Porto, 1992, vol.2, pl. 18; one from the collection of R.H.R. Palmer was sold at Christie's London, 14th June 1982, lot 81 and in these rooms 17th May 1988, lot 22; and one was recently sold in our Paris rooms, 16th December 2010, lot 33. A misfired and broken example has been recovered from the waste heaps of the Ming imperial kilns at Jingdezhen, see the exhibition catalogue Xuande Imperial Porcelain Excavated at Jingdezhen, Chang Foundation, Taipei, 1998, cat. no. 23.

Two tankards of this design from the Chinese imperial collection, both safely displayed on encompassing wooden stands, are depicted in the handscroll Guwantu ('Pictures of Antiques'), in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, which is dated in accordance with AD 1729; see China. The Three Emperors 1662-1795, Royal Academy of Arts, London, 2005-6, cat. no. 169.