A FINE WUCAI 'DRAGON AND PHOENIX' SAUCER MARK AND PERIOD OF WANLI

with steep rounded sides and flared rim, painted in underglaze blue and red, yellow, green and black enamels with a five-clawed dragon and phoenix in flight circling around a 'flaming pearl' surrounded by small clouds, the inner sides with small fruit and flower sprays, the outside with books, scrolls, horns and other emblems with and without ribbons, and the base inscribed with the six-character reign mark in a double ring

Collection of Harcourt Johnstone (1895-1945).
Collection of Mr and Mrs R.H.R. Palmer.
Sotheby's London, 27th November 1962, lot 48.
Collection of Neil F. Phillips QC, Montreal.
Reach Family Collection.
Eskenazi Ltd, London.

Chinese Art from the Reach Family Collection, Eskenazi Ltd, London, 1989, cat. no. 44 (illustrated).

Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, London, 1994-2010, vol. 2, no. 729.

The overall condition is very good. The enamelling is in pristine condition. There are just a couple minor iron spots.
"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."

This bright palette and the dragon-and-phoenix design, symbolizing Emperor and Empress, are classic features of Wanli imperial porcelain. This small piece is a particularly nice example, more carefully painted than most larger dishes and slightly unusual in its colour scheme, where blue and red dominate and green and yellow are used only sparingly. 

A similar saucer from the collection of Hans Öström, Stockholm, was sold at Christie's London, 11th July 2006, lot 145. A slightly larger, broken example in the Palace Museum, Beijing, with dragons and phoenixes also around the inner sides and the flower sprays instead on the reverse, is published in Geng Baochang, ed., Gugong Bowuyuan cang gu taoci ciliao xuancui [Selection of ancient ceramic material from the Palace Museum], Beijing, 2005, vol. 1, pl. 200; another pair of slightly larger dishes with the same design but painted in a different manner, from the Songde Tang collection, was included in the exhibition Fame of Flame. Imperial Wares of the Jiajing and Wanli Periods, University Museum and Art Gallery, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 2009-10, cat. no. 112.

Harcourt Johnstone was a British politician, whose Chinese collection was largely sold at Sotheby's London, 13th June 1940. According to the catalogue, his entire collection had been exhibited on loan in the principal provincial museums in the United Kingdom.