A FINE AND RARE LARGE BLUE AND WHITE HEXAGONAL VASE SEAL MARK AND PERIOD OF QIANLONG

sturdily potted of hexagonal section, the baluster body with broad and angular shoulders, elegantly sloping up to a waisted neck and a flaring mouth, finely decorated in vivid tones of cobalt blue with a composite scroll extending around the sides bearing numerous large and small stylised blooms including lotus and chrysanthemums, on an acanthus leaf scroll, similarly repeated around the facetted neck, divided by bands of pendent ruyi heads, foliate scroll, key-fret and upright lotus blossoms encircling the shoulders, the mouth collared by a further key-fret band suspending pendent lappets, all raised on a prominent splayed foot with a crashing waves border, the countersunk base inscribed with a six-character reign mark in underglaze blue

Sotheby's Hong Kong, 31st October 1995, lot 466.

The overall condition is very good.
"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."

It is rare to find vases of this elegant form decorated with a sumptuous scrolling flower design as seen on this piece. This large hexagonal form was introduced during the preceding Yongzheng period (1723-35) while the flower scroll design that is painted in the 'heaping and piling' technique to emulate early fifteenth century blue-and-white wares is firmly rooted in the Ming tradition. Only two other closely related examples appear to be known and were sold separately in these rooms, 5th November 1996, lot 820, and the other, 23rd October 2005, lot 357.

Vases of this form are more commonly known decorated with pendent sprays of fruit and flowers around the body and neck between lotus sprigs and spiky scrolls decorating the edges, such as the Qianlong example in the Nanjing Museum illustrated in The Official Kiln Porcelain of the Chinese Qing Dynasty, Shanghai, 2003, pl. 212; and another sold in these rooms, 5th October 2011, lot 1920. For the Yongzheng prototype see one from the Grandidier collection and now in the Musée Guimet, Paris, included in Oriental Ceramics. The World's Great Collections, vol. 7, Tokyo, 1981, pl. 164.