AN EXTREMELY RARE GOLD-ENAMELLED DISH MARK AND PERIOD OF YONGZHENG |

with shallow rounded sides resting on a short foot, richly covered overall save for the base with an even gold enamel, the white base inscribed in underglaze blue with a six-character reign mark within a double circle

Bluett & Sons Ltd, London (according to label).
Sotheby’s London, 6th June 1995, lot 244.
Sotheby's London, 15th May 2013, lot 169.

This dish is in good condition except for slight expected wear to the gold enamel, particularly to the interior.
"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."

The use of the colour gold on porcelain was revived during the Kangxi reign when new enamels were developed by the imperial kilns in his endeavour to revitalise porcelain production. Among these new enamels, gold was one of the most prized, possibly due to its association with the Daoist golden elixir of immortality (jindan). Vessels covered with this luxurious glaze required an initial high-temperature firing of the white-glazed body, followed by a layer of gold powder brushed evenly on the surface, before a second firing at a lower temperature. Despite its difficulty in production, gold-enamelled vessels continued to be produced in the Yongzheng period with much delicacy, resulting in finer yet rarer pieces, such as the present dish. A closely related dish, but of slightly smaller size, from the collection of Ralph and Irene Beacon, was sold in our New York rooms, 3rd December 1986, lot 267. Gold-enamelled vessels, with Yongzheng marks and of the period, include a bowl sold in these rooms, 20th May 1987, lot 500; another sold in our London rooms, 5th November 2014, lot 14; a pair sold twice in these rooms, 16th November 1988, lot 331, and again, 28th April 1992, lot 79; and a cup in the Sir Percival David collection and now in the British Museum, London, published in Margaret Medley, Illustrated Catalogue of Ming and Qing Monochrome Wares, London, 1989, pl. B598. An unmarked pair of bowls, in the Meiyintang collection, is illustrated in Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, vol. 2, London, 1994, pl. 949. Compare also a vase, decorated with five dragons rendered in famille-rose enamels against a gold ground, with a Yongzheng reign mark and of the period, sold in our New York rooms, 20th February 1975, lot 292, and again in our London rooms, 7th November 2012, lot 101.

Gilt-decorated porcelain is known from as early as the Yuan dynasty (1271-1368) and flourished into a monochrome glaze in the early Ming dynasty (1364-1644); see a stem bowl, in the collection of the Yomei Bunko, Tokyo, illustrated in Sekai toji zenshu [Ceramic art of the world], vol. 11, Tokyo, 1955, pl. 95.