A LARGE ARCHAISTIC VASE, HU QING DYNASTY, 19TH CENTURY

the body of ample pear shape, rising from a short spreading foot to a slightly waisted neck and everted rim, painted around the exterior in rich cobalt-blue tones with eight bands of mythical beasts divided by taotie masks and flanges, set at the shoulder with a pair of square handles, the base with an apocryphal Da Ming nianzhi mark

Formerly in a private collection, Vienna, (by repute).

For a very similar vase, with a Kangxi mark, see C.Runming, Qing Dynasty Blue and White Porcelain for the Shunzhi and Kangxi Courts, no.304, p.473