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This superb, finely decorated mallet-form vase is inscribed on the base with the reign mark of the Kangxi Emperor (r. 1662-1722), the longest reigning emperor in Chinese history. Its inscription confirms the vase’s Imperial heritage, and we can thus assume it was produced in the Imperial kilns where it would have been subject to the highest artistic and technical standards.

Inspired Form
The distinctive form, known as yaoling zun (literally ‘hand bell vase’) was an innovation of the Kangxi period and represents an unusual combination of archaic influences. The intricate medallions and leaf tips encircling the base of the vase were inspired by the decoration of ancient bronze vessels and mirrors.

Mastery of Color
The decoration adorning the vase is rendered with a subtle combination of underglaze blue and copper red. As you may know, it is notoriously difficult to control the firing of underglaze copper red, and even more difficult to control it in combination with underglaze cobalt blue. Here the line of the blue is unusually precise and sharp, while the copper red has also been fired to an ideal color, making this an exceptional work of technical mastery.

Highly Respected Provenance
Vases of this very rare form painted in vibrant tones of cobalt blue and copper red are among the most highly coveted by connoisseurs and collectors of Chinese porcelain. This example ranks among the finest of its type and also was illustrated in the seminal 1984 publication Christie’s Pictorial History of Chinese Ceramics by Anthony du Boulay.