A LARGE WUCAI 'DRAGON AND PHOENIX' DISH MARK AND PERIOD OF KANGXI |

vividly decorated on the interior with a pair of ferocious five-clawed dragons in red and yellow enamels, and a pair of open-winged phoenix amidst leafy branches of peony, further surrounded by a pair of aubergine and green dragons and a pair of phoenix in the cavetto, the exterior similarly decorated, all divided by double-line borders, the recessed base with a six-character reign mark in underglaze blue within a double circle

A French private collection, Montmorency.

Qing Porcelain from Private Collections, Marchant, London, 2015, cat. no. 3.

Apart from several retouched nicks confined to the undecorated area of the rim, the dish is in good overall condition and the enamels are particularly well preserved.
"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."

An identical dish from the Baron Mitsubishi collection was included in the exhibition Seikadō zō Shinchō tōji. Keitokuchin kanyō no bi [Qing dynasty porcelain collected in the Seikado. Beauty of Jingdezhen imperial kilns], Seikado Bunko Art Museum, Tokyo, 2006, cat. no. 28; another is illustrated in John Ayers, Far Eastern Ceramics in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1982, pl. 192, C.99-1967. See also a smaller dish of this pattern included in the exhibition Recent Acquisitions, S. Marchant & Son, London, 2003, pl. 5. Two large dishes of this type, made perhaps slightly later in the Kangxi reign, are illustrated in Yang Boda, The Tsui Museum of Art. Chinese Ceramics IV. Qing Dynasty, Hong Kong, 1995, pl. 98 and in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Porcelains in Polychrome and Contrasting Colours, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 133.