Property from the Collection of Dr Kenneth Lawley (1937-2023) | Kenneth Lawley（1937-2023年）博士收藏
An exceptionally rare 'Yaozhou' celadon-glazed pillow, Jin dynasty | 金 耀州窰青釉八方枕
Auction Closed
November 1, 04:48 PM GMT
Estimate
8,000 - 12,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
Property from the Collection of Dr Kenneth Lawley (1937-2023)
Kenneth Lawley（1937-2023年）博士收藏
An exceptionally rare 'Yaozhou' celadon-glazed pillow
Jin dynasty
金 耀州窰青釉八方枕
Length 31 cm, 12¼ n.
Priestley & Ferraro, London, 20th April 2005.
覺是軒，倫敦，2005年4月20日
Chinese Ceramic Pillows, Priestley & Ferraro, London, 2005, cat. no. 14.
《Chinese Ceramic Pillows》，覺是軒，倫敦，2005年，編號14
Elegant for its subtle glaze and slender form, Yaozhou pillows of this type are extremely rare. The plain, undecorated surface highlights the luminescence of the slightly crackled glaze. Pillows of this octagonal shape of any kind are very rare among the large-scale production of the main Yaozhou kilns. See an excavated example illustrated in Songdai yaozhou yaozhi [Song dynasty Yaozhou kiln site], Shaanxi, 1998, pl. 134.
The cooling properties of ceramic made it a particularly suitable material for the manufacture of pillows. The Northern Song dynasty poet Zhang Lei (1052-1112) in his Thanks to Master Huang for the Green Porcelain Pillow, wrote: 'Porcelain made by the Gong people is strong and blue; an old friend gave it to me to beat the heat; it cools down the room like a breeze; keeping my head cool while I sleep; This amazing clay item keeps one's head cool and hair cold'.
The cooling properties of ceramic made it a particularly suitable material for the manufacture of pillows. The Northern Song dynasty poet Zhang Lei (1052-1112) in his Thanks to Master Huang for the Green Porcelain Pillow, wrote: 'Porcelain made by the Gong people is strong and blue; an old friend gave it to me to beat the heat; it cools down the room like a breeze; keeping my head cool while I sleep; This amazing clay item keeps one's head cool and hair cold'.