AN UNDERGLAZE-BLUE AND COPPER-RED DOUBLE-GOURD 'IMMORTALS' WINE EWER, WARMER AND COVER QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY / EARLY 19TH CENTURY

the pear-shaped ewer set to one side with a curved spout and to the other with a loop handle, with a deep cylindrical container and extending from the base, surmounted by a slightly domed cover with a bud finial, all supported on a globular warmer set with a pair of lion-mask handles, the vessels painted with the Eight Daoist Immortals against a dense ground of turbulent waves painted in copper-red, with bats and scattered clouds painted to the lower body, handle, spout and cover of the ewer, the base of the warmer with a four-character hallmark reading Qingyi Tang zhi (Hall of Blessings and Correctness) within a double square in underglaze blue (3)

The ewer: with an extremely faint star crack beneath the rim to one side, measuring approximately 4cm; and a restored rim crack to the other side, 2.3cm. Some apparent restoration visible to the lower section of the handle (which does not appear to have been off). A small frit to the tip of the spout. The tip of the handle with a small area of glaze abrasion or loss, possible from firing. The globular warmer with a faint star hairline to the center of the body, measuring 3.6cm. The handles missing. The cover in good condition.
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 hallmark, Qingyi tang zhi, refers to the 'Hall of Blessings and Correctness', and is associated with porcelains produced during the Yongzheng to Jiaqing periods. A millefleurs famille-rose bowl inscribed with the same hallmark, is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Porcelains with Cloisonné Enamel Decoration and Famille Rose Decoration, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 184, where it is attributed to the Jiaqing period.

Compare a wine warmer of similar form and decoration in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, inscribed with a Yongzheng mark, illustrated by Warren E. Cox, The Book of Pottery and Porcelain, vol. II, New York, 1949, pl. 164, fig. 872. Another, in the Royal Ontario Museum, is inscribed with a Caihua tang zhi (Hall of Brilliant Splendor) mark, accession number 911.8.60A-C. A third example, inscribed with a Yanghe tang zhi (Hall for Cultivating Harmony), in the collection of Seikadō Bunko Art Museum in Tokyo, is illustrated in Seikadō zō Shinchō tōji. Keitokuchin kanyō no bi [Qing dynasty porcelain collected in the Seikado. Beauty of Jingdezhen imperial kilns], Seikado Bunko Art Museum, Tokyo, 2006, cat. no. 41.