A FINE SMALL LEMON YELLOW-GLAZED BOWL | 清雍正 檸檬黃釉小盌 《大清雍正年製》款

The vibrant hue of the lemon-yellow glaze was a unique innovation of the Yongzheng period, which was achieved through the combination of antimoniate of iron and tin oxide. As the yellow glaze was intimately associated with imperial power, yellow-glazed wares had been reserved exclusively for ritual ceremonies- thus lemon-yellow vessels such as this cup provided the court with an alternative for daily use.

Compare a pair of closely related cups, in the Leshantang collection, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 5th November 1997, lot 1375; another pair from the collection of Mr and Mrs Eli Lilly, sold in our New York rooms, 3rd June 1993, lot 334; a third pair from the Edward T. Chow collection, sold in these rooms, 25th November 1980, lot 101; and a fourth, from the collection of W.F. van Heukelom, sold in these rooms, 5th November 2014, lot 51. See also a slightly smaller pair of bowls in the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities, Stockholm, illustrated in Jan Wirgin, Chinese Ceramics from the Axel and Nora Lundgren Bequest, Stockholm, 1978, pl. 58b, no. 78.

雍正年間，瓷匠利用亞銻酸鐵與氧化錫，研製燒成不透明之檸檬黃釉呈色鮮明亮黃。黃釉與宮廷有聯繫密切，只限祭祀儀式所用；檸檬黃釉瓷則可供宮廷各場合運用。

比較一對例，出自樂山堂收藏，售於香港蘇富比1997年11月5日，編號1375；另一對例出自Eli Lilly伉儷收藏，售於紐約蘇富比1993年6月3日，編號334；第三對例出自仇焱之收藏，售於倫敦蘇富比1980年11月25日，編號101；其四出自W.F. van Heukelom收藏，售於倫敦蘇富比2014年11月5日，編號51。尚有一對例，尺寸較小，現藏於斯德哥爾摩Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities，載於Jan Wirgin，《Chinese Ceramics from the Axel and Nora Lundgren Bequest》，斯德哥爾摩，1978年，圖版58b，編號78。