A RARE 'LONGQUAN' CELADON VASE, CONG SOUTHERN SONG DYNASTY

modelled after an archaic jade cong, each long edge of the square-sectioned body with eight raised horizontal bands within a raised rectangular frame, all supported on a short foot and surmounted by a gently tapered neck, covered overall save for the footring with a lustrous celadon glaze draining to pale bluish-white at the raised edges and pooling to sea-green at the recessed areas

A Japanese private collection, by repute.

There are two areas of bruise to the rim, one with an associated circa 6.5cm zigzag hairline crack. Some small chips to the corners of the cong, the largest measuring approx. 1.5cm wide to one upper corner, with an associated 3.2cm hairline running diagonally from the flake. There is a 1.8x0.5cm shallow glaze flake/flaw to a corner next to this. Some frits and minor flakes to the edges.
"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."

Celadon vases of this form imitate archaic ritual jade objects in shape and colour and represent one of the most characteristic types of Song ceramics. The form derives from jade cong, which are not shaped as containers but as open tubes, and are known particularly from the Neolithic Liangzhu culture. A fine example from the Shanghai Museum, Shanghai, was included in the exhibition Gems of Liangzhu Culture, Hong Kong Museum of History, Hong Kong, 1992, cat. no. 57.

Several cong vases can be seen in famous collections throughout the world; one in the Shanghai Museum is illustrated in Longquan qingci [Celadon of Longquan], Beijing, 1966, pl. 15; one is published in the Illustrated Catalogue of Sung Dynasty Porcelain in the National Palace Museum. Lung-ch'uan Ware, Ko Ware and Other Wares, Tokyo, 1974, pls 8 and 9; another from the Eumorfopoulus Collection and now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, is included in John Ayers, Far Eastern Ceramics in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1980, pl. 124; and a fourth example from the Oppenheim Collection and now in the British Museum, London, is published in Jessica Rawson, ed., The British Museum Book of Chinese Art, London, 1992, pl. 8 left.

Compare also a vase of this type, from the Toguri Collection, sold in our London rooms, 9th June 2004, lot 53; and another from the Baron Hatvany Collection, included in the exhibition Song Ceramics, Southeast Asian Ceramic Society, Singapore, 1983, cat. no. 36, and sold in our London rooms, 5th November 1996, lot 605.