A SUPERB 'JIZHOU' 'PHOENIX' VASE SOUTHERN SONG DYNASTY

well potted with an ovoid body rising to a wide, slightly tapered, neck and a lipped rim, applied overall with a rich dark brown glaze, save for two pairs of phoenix in flight left in the biscuit on each side and fired to a pale orange colour, each pair consisting of a phoenix rising and another swooping downwards, with details drawn in brown slip and flower heads dividing the pairs

The vase is in overall very good condition except for a few minute glaze flakes on the mouth rim and typical pitting to the glaze, mostly on and around the neck. There is a thin glaze gap of 1.5 cm along the joint of the neck and shoulder, and a burst bubble of 0.7 x 0.3 cm on the other side of the shoulder, as well as a kiln chip to the foot of 0.6 x 0.45 cm.
"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."

A slightly larger vase of this type, painted with a dynamic and elaborate image of a phoenix, in the Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, was included in the Museum's exhibition Hare's Fur, Tortoiseshell and Partridge Feathers. Chinese Brown and Black Glazed Ceramics 400-1400, Cambridge, 1995, cat. no. 103, where the author notes that the form of these meiping derives from contemporary silver bottles, such as the one recovered from a tomb dated to 1195 in Jiangpu county, Jiangsu province (see p. 253).

Further related vases include one sold in our London rooms, 11th December 1990, lot 220; and another also painted with scattered prunus blossoms, sold in our New York rooms, 17th March 2015, lot 181.