Gourde en porcelaine bleu blanc Chine, dynastie Qing, marque et époque Qianlong (1736-1795)

la panse de forme circulaire, les côtés étroits à décor de chauve-souris et nuages stylisés, reposant sur un court pied évasé ceint d'une frise de palmes, le petit col évasé agrémenté de chauve-souris et nuages stylisés sous une frise de ruyi et encadré d'anses ajourées sculptées d'animaux fabuleux, la panse décorée sur chaque face de deux dragons à cinq griffes poursuivant la perle sacrée représentée au centre d'un médaillon circulaire en relief parmi des nuages stylisés, marque zhuanshu Qianlong à six caractères en bleu sous couverte

Old restoration to the neck (a 4cm C-shape section) ; one unburst air bubble to the central medallion on one side of the flask and a firing fault to the edge of the other side.
"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."

Qianlong moonflasks of this form, painted with dragons amid stylised clouds, are rare although a similar example was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 25th November 1981, lot 248. The same design can be found on a larger Qianlong flask with dragons in puce enamel among underglaze-blue clouds, also sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 1st November 1974, lot 300.

Larger moonflasks of this type can also be found painted with lotus scroll design ; for example, see a flask included in the exhibition Chinese Blue and White Porcelain, City Museum and Art Gallery, Hong Kong, 1975, cat. no. 111 ; and another in the Art Institute of Chicago, included in the exhibition Chinese Ceramics from Chicago Collections, Mary and Leigh Block Gallery, Northwestern University, Illinois, 1982, cat. no. 67 ; and a third sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 8th October 2006, lot 1066. Flasks of this type were also painted with the bajixiang motif radiating from a raised central boss decorated with a single flower-head, such as the example from the Nanjing Museum illustrated in Zhongguo lidai Jingdezhen ciqi - Qing juan, Beijing, 1998, p. 169 ; and another sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 5th November 1996, lot 813, both of much larger size than the current example.

The shape of this vessel is based on early 15th century, Yongle period, bianhu of circular form with a flattened back but similar domed front. See a flask in the Palace Museum, Beijing, published in Zhongguo wenwu jinghua daquan : Taoci juan, Hong Kong, 1993, p. 369, no. 677 ; and another from the collection of Mrs. Clare de Pinna and now in the Freer Gallery of Art, Washington D.C., sold in our London rooms, 29th October 1957, lot 166. The present flask is after a Middle Eastern metal form of which only one unique example appears to have survived, a Syrian brass canteen of the mid-13th century, also in the Freer Gallery of Art and also sold in our London rooms, 5th June 1940, lot 72, from the collection of George Eumorfopoulos.