Printed from Woolley & Wallis

Description

A CHINESE YELLOW-GLAZED BOWL
MID 17TH CENTURY

The body with deep rounded sides rising from a circular foot to a flared rim, covered inside and out with a rich yellow glaze, the base covered with a clear glaze, with a six-character Jiajing mark, 12.3cm.

Cf. Christie's London, The ET Hall Collection of Chinese Monochrome Porcelains, 7th June 2004, lot 281 for a closely related but slightly smaller Jiajing mark and period yellow-glazed cup.

The rich yellow hue, seen on the bowl offered here, was a colour reserved for wares for the Imperial court. This yellow hue was produced at the Imperial kilns in Jingdezhen throughout the Ming dynasty, and was achieved by adding ferric oxide to the lead silicate base, making this glaze a direct descendant of the yellow lead glazes of the Tang dynasty. Light-coloured glazes depended on the highest level of purity of the clay and great skill from the potter, as the combination of such minimalist form and glaze in pieces like this meant that the slightest irregularity would result in their rejection.

明嘉靖 御製黃釉撇口碗
《大明嘉靖年製》楷書款