A FINE 'FAMILLE-VERTE' 'HEHE ERXIAN' VASE QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY

the baluster body painted with the Hehe Erxian twins and Liu Hai looking at a toad, one carrying a ruyi-sceptre, all below swooping iron-red bats, the reverse separated by a gnarled tree and decorative rockery sprouting bamboo painted with another figure before an altar with a shallow dish holding a 'flaming pearl', all below a diaper band at the shoulder, the waisted neck rising to an everted rim painted with the twins looking into a basket containing an iron-red bat and holding a long stem of lotus, the base with an underglaze-blue double-circle

As common for pieces of this type and age, this vase has some minor original firing flaws such as a few burst bubbles (two which have fritted slightly) and impurities on the interior rim. There are also a few very minor surface scratches and tiny enamel flakes at the body. Otherwise, the vase is in very good condition overall. The colours of the enamels are less fluorescent than the catalogue suggests.
"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."

Compare a Kangxi vase of very similar shape but decorated with a different figure scene, bequested by John D. Rockefeller Jr. to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, illustrated in Suzanne G. Valenstein, A Handbook of Chinese Ceramics, New York, 1975, pl. 132; and another vase of this form included in Christiaan J. A. Jörg, Chinese Ceramics in the Collection of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Amsterdam, 1997, pl. 161,  where it is attributed to the late 17^th century.