AN OUTSTANDING AND FINE WHITE-GLAZED ANHUA-DECORATED FLORAL BOWL MING DYNASTY, YONGLE PERIOD

superbly potted, the deep rounded sides rising from a short tapered foot to a wide flared rim, deftly incised on the exterior with four detached foliate sprays of lotus, camellia, rose and peony, each naturalistically rendered with an attendant bud and corresponding leaves under a faint double-line border at the rim, the interior centred with a medallion enclosing a fruiting branch of pomegranate within double circles, one of the fruits bursting open revealing its numerous seeds, the white porcelain covered overall with a very smooth 'sweet-white' (tianbai) glaze, save for the slightly beveled footring left in the biscuit

Peter Boode, London.
Collection of Carl Kempe.

Oriental Ceramics: The World’s Great Collections, vol. 8, Tokyo, 1982, pl. 206.
Bo Gyllensvärd, Chinese Ceramics in the Carl Kempe Collection, Stockholm, 1964, no. 667.
Chinese Ceramic Treasures. A Selection from the Ulricehamn East Asian Museum, Including The Carl Kempe Collection, The Museum of Art and Far Eastern Antiquities, Ulricehamn, 2002, p. 269, no. 858.

The bowl is in very fine condition. There are a couple of pin-prick air bubbles on the interior medallion and one or two characteristic minor stain pin-pricks to the rim. The actual colour is more milky white, less greyish compared to the catalogue illustration.
"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 elegant bowl is an example of some of the finest white porcelains that were made during the reign of the Yongle Emperor. Daisy Lion-Goldschmidt in Ming Porcelain, London, 1978, p. 79, describes white monochromes as ‘glories of the period. The technical perfection is unsurpassed, with a body so pure and fine, so perfectly translucent – the rims often seem as though they consist only of glaze – that they are described as ‘bodiless’ (t’o t’ai). The finely incised design is visible only against the light.’ This method referred to is the anhua ('secret decoration') technique where the design was delicately incised on the surface of a vessel and then covered with a diluted slip. An example of an anhua decorated white-glazed Yongle bowl in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is published in The Complete Works of Chinese Ceramics, vol. 13, pt. II, Shanghai, 1999, pl. 5.

A related bowl of slightly smaller size, incised with various flowers and buds, was sold in our New York rooms, 4^th June 1982, lot 215, again in our London rooms, 17^th November 1999, lot 750, and a third time in these rooms, 8^th October 2009, lot 1623; and another incised with lotus and peonies, also from the Kempe collection, illustrated in Oriental Ceramics. The World’s Great Collections, Tokyo, 1982, pl. 210, was sold in our Paris rooms, 12th June 2008, lot 29. Compare also a smaller undecorated white bowl from the early Yongle stratum of the Ming Imperial kiln site, included in the exhibition Imperial Porcelain of the Yongle and Xuande Periods Excavated from the Site of the Ming Imperial Factory at Jingdezhen, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, 1989, cat. no. 16.

The high quality of imperial porcelain characteristic of the Yongle period can be attributed to the establishment of the imperial kilns at Jingdezhen. The emperor’s interest in aesthetics and excellence fuelled the technical refinement of porcelain production. By centralising the manufacturing of imperial porcelain under the supervision of the Gong bu (Ministry of Works), one of the top echelon agencies under the supervisory coordination of the Nei ge (Grand Secretariat) which reported directly to the emperor, Yongle could have direct control over the style and quality of wares created for the imperial court.

While white is the colour of mourning in China and white wares were made for ritual use in Buddhist ceremonies, they also appear to have been the taste of the court officials. One of the most important collections of Yongle white porcelain was excavated from the tombs of general Sung Sheng (d. 1407) and his wife (d. 1418). The two tombs contained a total of 129 pieces of white porcelain, all thinly potted and of superb quality.