AN EXTREMELY RARE KOREAN CELADON BOTTLE VASE KORYO DYNASTY, 12TH CENTURY

elegantly potted, the elongated pear-shaped body gracefully rising from a short tapered foot to a slender waisted neck flaring gently at the rim, covered overall in a rich sea-green glaze stopping at the neatly cut footring revealing the greyish-buff ware

Collection of Miss Dorothy C. Pape, until 1961.
Bluett & Sons Ltd, London, 1961 (£35).
Collection of Roger Pilkington (1928-69), from 1961 (£85).

There are two sections of the rim (3cm by 1cm and 1cm by 0.6cm) that have been over painted with gilt-lacquer, covering restoration. There are typical firing imperfections to the body of the vase, including a 1cm area which has been bruised, with resulting glaze flake. Photos of the reverse of the case, showing this, are available upon request.
"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."

Celadon-glazed vases of this sweeping form are held in important museums and private collections worldwide; see one in the National Museum of Korea, Seoul, included in the exhibition Treasures from Korea. Art Through 5000 Years, British Museum, London, cat. no. 144; another from the collection of G.St.G.M. Gompertz, now in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, illustrated in Yong-I Yun, Korean Art from the Gompertz and Other Collections in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, 2006, front cover and pl. 67; and a third vase illustrated in Sekai tōji zenshū [Catalogue of world’s ceramics], vol. 13, Tokyo, 1955, pl. 50. See also a smaller vase of this type, from the collection of Don Henry Salin and now in the Musée Guimet, Paris, illustrated in Pierre Cambon, L’Art Coréen au Musée Guimet, Paris, 2001, pl. 23, no. 6; and another from the Ataka collection, now in the Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka, illustrated in The Beauty of Asian Ceramics from the Collection of the Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka, 2014, pl. 4.