A 'JIZHOU' 'PAPER-CUT' TEABOWL SOUTHERN SONG DYNASTY

the deep, gently curved sides rising from a short tapering foot to a slightly incurved rim, resist decorated to the interior with three quatrefoil medallions reserved in dark brown against a streaky pale gray-brown-colored ground, the exterior with a dark brown glaze irregularly splashed with amber-colored spots in imitation of tortoiseshell, the base unglazed revealing the light buff body 

Collection of Dr. Richard and Mrs. Mary Eckhardt, acquired in Japan between 1947-1952 while Dr. Eckhardt was serving as a surgeon in the United States Army and thence by descent.

The rim of the bowl with three shallow U-form areas of repair painted over, the largest approximately 2in by 1/2 in (5cm by 1.3cm) and probably a made up ceramic replacement. Also a 2 inch (5cm) haircrack running down from a small restored rim chip.
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.

The Jizhou kilns are renown for innovative decorative techniques among which is the use of paper cut-outs as stencils to create resist designs. For a discussion of the processes involved in producing such designs, see Robert D. Mowry, Hare's Fur, Tortoiseshell, and Partridge Feathers, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1996, pp. 36-7 and no.100 for a similar example. For another similar bowl excavated from the kilns at Yonghe, Ji'an, Jiangxi Province in 1980 and now in the Jiangxi Provincial Museum see the exhibition catalogue Jizhou Kiln, Beijing, 2007, no 47.