A lemon-yellow glazed bowl, Mark and period of Yongzheng | 清雍正 檸檬黄釉盌 《大清雍正年製》款

A Californian private collection.

加洲私人收藏

The vibrant hue of the lemon-yellow glaze was a unique innovation of the Yongzheng period, which was achieved through the combination of antimoniate of iron and tin oxide. As the yellow glaze was intimately associated with imperial power, yellow-glazed wares had been reserved exclusively for ritual ceremonies- thus lemon-yellow vessels such as this cup provided the court with an alternative for daily use.

See two similar bowls from the Zhuyuetang Collection, illustrated in Shimmering Colours: Monochromes from the Yuan to Qing Periods, Chinese University of Hong Kong Art Museum, Hong Kong, 2005, cat nos 128 and 129. A similar pair with three-column marks, formerly in the J.M. Hu Collection and now preserved in the Shanghai Museum, is illustrated in Qing Imperial Monochromes: The Zande Lou Collection, Hong Kong, 2005, cat. no. 18; where the author notes, 'the use of yellow-glazed wares was highly restricted in the Qing Court. Wares entirely glazed in yellow were reserved for the emperor, the emperor’s dowager and the empress. Senior concubines would use wares with a yellow glaze on the outside and a transparent glaze on the inside. Not only the glaze colour, but also the number and types of vessels were under strict control as noted in Guochao Gongshi. An archival record dated 1733 of the Yongzheng reign, shows that yellow-glazed bowls and cups were classified by three grades.' Compare also a similar bowl included in the exhibition The World of Monochromes, Oriental Ceramic Society, London, 2009, cat. no. 189.