RARE ET IMPORTANTE GOURDE À LA GLAÇURE DE TYPE... Lot 65

RARE ET IMPORTANTE GOURDE À LA GLAÇURE DE TYPE RU, BIANHU Marque et époque Qianlong (1736-1795) A VERY RARE LARGE IMPERIAL RU-TYPE 'EIGHT TRIGRAMS' MOONFLASK, BIANHU Qianlong seal mark and of the period Superbly potted with a flattened circular body rising elegantly from a short spreading foot to a cylindrical neck with a raised filet and terminating in a lipped rim, flanked by a pair of archaistic scroll handles, each side with a central moulded central domed medallion in relief enclosing a yinyang motif, surrounded by a wide band featuring the Bagua (Eight Trigrams) moulded in relief, the flat sides decorated with a series of large, raised bosses, covered overall with a lustrous glaze of sky blue colour with a hint of green suffused with a fine network of crackles. 51.5cm (20 1/4in) high. Footnotes: 清乾隆 仿汝釉太極八卦紋抱月瓶 青花「大清乾隆年製」篆書款 Provenance: Alfred Speelman Ltd., London An important British private collection, acquired from the above on 5 October 1970, and thence by descent 來源： 倫敦古董商Alfred Speelman 英國重要私人收藏，於1970年10月5日購自上者，由後人保存迄今 The present vase is very rare and no other example dating to the Qianlong period appears to have been recorded. In terms of craftsmanship it represents an important example illustrating the incredibly refined technical achievements of the most senior potters working in the Imperial kilns in Jingdezhen under the Qianlong emperor. The impressive size and the uniform, lustrous glaze imitating the renowned Ru-ware of the Song dynasty were technically challenging and required expert skills when controlling the firing conditions in order to achieve the desired product. The form of this moonflask is loosely inspired by early Ming dynasty prototypes which themselves were inspired by Islamic metal forms, see J. A. Pope, 'An Early Ming Porcelain in Muslim Style', in R. Ettinghausen, ed., Aus der Welt der Islamischen Kunst, Festschrift für Ernst Kühnel, Berlin, 1959, pp.357-375. Its unctuous, highly lustrous glaze of vibrant bluish-green hue, is an imitation of the rarest of the 'Five Great Wares' of the Song dynasty, the Ru glaze, which was used on wares made for the Imperial Court during the Northern Song dynasty. The Eight Trigrams bagua that feature prominently on both sides of the vase, add a Daoist element to the clean lines of the moonflask, as the trigrams, Qian, Kun, Zhen, Xun, Kan, Li, Gen, Dui, representing heaven, earth, thunder, wind, water, fire, mountain and marsh, carried important meaning for the Qianlong emperor, representing the universe and alluding to the fact the heaven and earth, male and female principles were intertwined under a harmonious rule. The vase, although based on earlier prototypes, is a direct continuation of porcelains made under the Yongzheng emperor, see a celadon-glazed 'Eight Trigrams' moonflask, bearing a Yongzheng seal mark and of the period, illustrated in The Prime Cultural Relics Collected by Shenyang Imperial Palace Museum: The Chinaware Volume, vol. II, Liaoyang, 2008, p.61; compare also with an 'Eight Trigrams' Ge-type moonflask, also of the Yongzheng period, in the collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei, Museum no.ZC003964N. The Daoist design of the present vase is a manifestation of the previous Yongzheng Emperor's known attraction to Daoist longevity practices, which included indulging in consumption of lead-based 'elixirs of life'. The Imperial Court provided patronage to the White Cloud Monastery in Beijing, and elaborate Daoist celebrations were also regularly staged around the Qianlong Emperor's birthdays. The grandest of Daoist rituals, the jiao rite of communal renewal, also received Imperial support. However, the Yongzheng Emperor's immersion in Daoist practices was an exception, as most of the Qing Emperors followed Buddhism alongside Confucian rituals of the state; see P. Berger, 'Religion', in E.S. Rawski and J. Rawson, eds., China: The Three Emperors 1662 - 1795, London, 2005, pp.132-133. Compare this vase with a related Ru-type archaistic hexagonal vase, also with a Qianlong seal mark and period, sold in Sotheby's New York, 23rd March 2011, lot 736. See also a related Ru-type glazed vase, cong, with a Qianlong seal mark and period, sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 3 June 2015, lot 3108. This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: * * VAT on imported items at a reduced rate of 5.5% on the hammer price and the prevailing rate on buyer's premium if the item remains in EU. TVA sur les objets importés à un taux réduit de 5.5% sur le prix d'adjudication et un taux en vigueur sur la prime d'achat dans le cas où l'objet reste dans l'Union Européenne. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com