A Ru-type hexagonal vase, hu, Seal mark and period of Qianlong | 清乾隆　仿汝釉六方貫耳壺　《大清乾隆年製》款

A Japanese private collection.

Kochukyo Co., Ltd, Tokyo.

Covered in a subtle glaze of a misty bluish grey and suffused overall with a fine crackle,, this vase forms a marked contrast to the richly ornamented decorative style that is generally associated with the Qianlong period, and illustrates the technical perfection achieved by craftsmen working at the imperial kilns in Jingdezhen. Monochrome vessels required the highest level of skill and precision in every stage of their production, from the purity of the clay and precision of the potting to the evenness of the glaze and control of the firing. The slightest irregularity would result in the rejection and destruction of the piece, thus pushing the craftsmen to the limits of their abilities, particularly in the production of large vessels such as the current vase. The subtle glaze has been created in imitation of Ru ware, one of the ‘five great wares’ of the Song period (960-1279) along with Ding, ge, guan and Jun. It reflects the Qing emperors’ penchant for these early wares, which they not only collected but also commissioned the imperial kilns to recreate or imitate. Even the unglazed foot has been stained with a brown wash to simulate its predecessors.

See a closely related example of similar size from the collection of Sakamoto Gorō, sold in these rooms, 8th October 2014, lot 3508. Smaller vases of this type include one sold in our New York rooms, 23rd March 2011, lot 736; and another sold in these rooms, 26th October 2003, lot 50. For the Yongzheng prototype, see a guan-type vase from the Qing court collection and still in Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Monochrome Porcelain, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 204. Compare also an example sold in these rooms, 9th October 2007, lot 1534.

Qianlong vases of this form are known in a number of different glazes; for example see one of similar size covered in a teadust glaze, published in Chinese Ceramics from the Idemitsu Collection, Tokyo, 1987, pl. 965; another from the Toguri Collection, Tokyo, sold in our London rooms, 9th June 2004, lot 3, and again in these rooms, 8th April 2010, lot 1822; a smaller vase with a sky-blue glaze, from the Hakutsuru Art Museum, Kobe, included in Sekai toji zenshu/Ceramic Art of the World, vol. 12, Tokyo, 1956, pl. 46; and a celadon-glazed example sold in these rooms, 25th November 1981, lot 323. The panelled shape of this vase was also suited to underglaze-blue designs; for example, see one in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Treasures in the Royalty. The Official Kiln Porcelain of the Qing Dynasty, Shanghai, 2003, pl. 238. 

來源

日本私人收藏

壺中居，東京

見坂本五郎舊藏類似一例，香港蘇富比，2014年10月8日，拍品編號3508；另有器型少小者，如紐約蘇富比2011年3月23日，拍品編號736，香港蘇富比2003年10月26日，拍品編號50。其雍正朝之原型，可見北京故宮藏一件仿官窰一例，著錄於《故宮博物院藏文物珍品全集：單色釉》，香港，1999年，圖版204。香港蘇富比已曾售出一例，2007年10月9日，拍品編號1534。

乾隆朝此式瓶尚見他種釉色：如同尺寸之茶葉末釉例，載於《出光美術館藏中國陶瓷》，東京，1987年，圖版965；東京戶栗美術館藏例，售於倫敦蘇富比，2004年6月9日，拍品編號3，後售於香港蘇富比2010年4月8日，拍品編號1822；另有尺寸稍小的天青釉一例，神戶白鶴美術館藏，載於《世界陶磁全集》第12卷，東京，1956年，圖版46；及一件青瓷釉例，香港蘇富比1981年11月25日，拍品編號323。同式器亦有青花裝飾者，如北京故宮藏例，見《宮廷珍藏：中國清代官窰瓷器》，上海，2003年，圖版238。