A RARE CLOISONNE ENAMEL 'FLORAL' BOWL MING DYNASTY, YONGLE / XUANDE PERIOD

sturdily cast, with thick rounded walls rising from a small foot ring, with a raised double-fillet band to the exterior, enclosing a classic scroll on a blue ground, the lower section of the bowl with scrolling lotus beneath further floral scrolls at the rim, the interior similarly enameled and centered with a floral bloom, all against a turquoise ground and gilt details 

Christie's Hong Kong, 2nd November 1999, lot 798.  

As consistent with enamels of this period, there is some turquoise-green scattered infill to lost and flaked enamels. A 0.1cm casting hole to the underside of the horizontal rib around the exterior. Possible re-gilding to rims.
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.

This charming bowl is accentuated by the raised band that encircles the exterior; two closely related examples in the Pierre Uldry collection were included in the exhibition Chinesisches Cloisonné die Sammlung Pierre Uldry, Museum Reitberg, Zurich, 1985, cat. nos 20 and 21; another was sold in our London rooms, 18th June 1985, lot 242; and a fourth example was sold at Christie's London, 1st December 1997, lot 277. Compare also a bowl of this type, but the raised band decorated with red scrolling leaves on a turquoise ground, sold in our London rooms, 13th December 1988, lot 43.

The refinement and sinicisation of Buddhist-style imagery in the fifteenth century is evident in the elegant bands of decoration on this bowl. Tibetan-inspired cloisonné enamel vessels were created for use in Buddhist temples and thus decorated with designs suitable for their ceremonial function and surroundings. The dense composition of lotus scrolls with spiky blooms that often filled the background of paintings from central Tibet has been adopted by Chinese craftsmen as the main decorative motif for this piece. This design was chosen to adorn a variety of artefacts, including porcelain, lacquer and bronze.

For a cloisonné enamel kundika derived from a Tibetan prototype, similarly decorated with lotus scrolls interlaced with raised bands of gilt bronze, see one from the T.B. Kitson collection, sold in our London rooms, 18th October 1960, and now in the British Museum, London, published in Sir Harry Garner, Chinese and Japanese Cloisonné Enamels, London, 1962, pl. 16. The stylised lotus flower medallion adorning the centre of the interior of the bowl is also seen on Xuande mark and period vessels; three circular boxes with similar lotus flower motifs on the cover, in the Pierry Uldry collection, were included in the Museum Reitberg exhibition, op. cit., cat. nos 1-4; and a blue and white bowl in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, was included in the Special Exhibition of Selected Hsuan-te Imperial Porcelains of the Ming Dynasty, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1998, cat. no. 184.