A PAIR OF DOUCAI 'BAJIXIANG' BOWLS QIANLONG SEAL MARKS AND PERIOD

each body of ogee form rising from a recessed base to a flaring rim, brightly painted and enamelled to the interior with a floret, peach and ruyi medallion  encircled by the bajixiang in the well, the exterior with a foliate scroll band above ruyi lappets

The bowls are later matched. The bowl with a fainter mark has a hairline glaze crack on the double clappers, and a faint glaze line on the rim near it. The exterior has a deep 3cm scratch next to the iron-red flower. The other bowl has some discoloured pinprick holes around the exterior, particularly evident around the puce-enamelled flower and the base, The base with a circular firing flaw near the foot below the mark. There are some deep scratches to the exterior. Both bowls with minor enamel wear, patches of brown accretions and glaze firing imperfections such as iron spots and burst glaze bubbles.
"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."

Bowls of this form and design are held in important museum and private collections worldwide; see one in the Nanjing Museum, Nanjing, included in the exhibition Qing Imperial Porcelain of the Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong Reigns, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1995, cat. no. 106; another in the Tokyo National Museum, included in the Illustrated Catalogue of Tokyo National Museum. Chinese Ceramics, vol. 2, Tokyo, 1990, pl. 593, together with two bowls of this type with Jiaqing and Daoguang marks and of the respective periods; a pair from the Umezawa Kinenkan, Tokyo, included in the exhibition Shinsho tōji, MOA Art Museum, Atami, 1984, cat. no. 44; and a further pair from the Toguri Museum of Art, Tokyo, sold in these rooms, 9^th June 2004, lot 2.

Qianlong mark and period bowls of this type are also known painted in underglaze blue; see for example two bowls sold in our Hong Kong rooms, the first, 29^th May 1978, lot 632, and the second, 21^st May 1982, lot 714.