A rare persimmon-glazed 'ding' cupstand Northern Song Dynasty

the finely potted saucer of shallow form with slightly curved sides rising to the hexalobed rim, set in the center with an alms-bowl-shaped receptacle with steep rounded sides and gently incurved mouthrim, applied overall with a russet glaze transmuting to dark-brown in areas, draining around the rims to form a pale buff lip, the hollow splayed foot carefully glazed inside leaving only the neatly finished footring bare to reveal the delicate ivory-white body

The piece has been restored, with two restuck pieces to the rim and a few small associated flakes that have been restored. A small piece of the pale body on the saucer remains unglazed, and there is one filled in area 1/8 inch wide to the underside of the saucer.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

It is rare to find 'Ding' cupstands of this semilustrous persimmon glaze and lobed shape. Cupstands of this type were used as utensils for preparing and drinking tea as early as the Tang dynasty. It served the practical purpose of an elaborate saucer that held a teabowl while drinking hot tea. This particular form is said to originate from lacquer and metal cupstands of the Northern Song period. See a lacquer stand excavated from a Song tomb at Heqiao, Yixing county, Jiangsu province, now in the Nanjing Museum, published in Chinese Lacquer from the Jean-Pierre Collection and Others, Eskenazi, London, 1992, p. 10, fig. 3.

For examples of persimmon-glazed 'Ding' cupstands of rounded shape see one with a cup, found in Korea, in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, illustrated in Rose Kerr, Song Dynasty Ceramics, London, 2004, pl. 40; another included in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Porcelain of the Song Dynasty (i), Hong Kong, 1996, pl. 86; and a third example in the Saint Louis Art Museum, included in the exhibition Hare's Fur, Tortoiseshell and Partridge Feathers, Harvard University of Art Museums, Cambridge, Mass., 1995, cat.no. 13. Compare also a cupstand, from the Arthur M. Sackler and Ruth Dreyfus collections, sold at Christie's New York, 1st December 1994, lot 155; and another sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 2nd May 2000, lot 598.