DATED TO THE SIXTH YEAR OF THE REPUBLIC, CORRESPONDING TO 1917, FOUR-CHARACTER IRON-RED JUREN TANG MARK

Gao Baochang was appointed 'Superintendant of Ceramics' at Jingdezhen at the turn of 1915/16 by Yuan Shikai, China's President of the Republic. His reign as the last imperial monarch lasted fewer than 100 days. This dated vase, signed Gao Baochang and bearing a Juren Tang Zhi mark, is an important and scarce example likely to have been commissioned by this leader during his short reign. Juren Tang was the palace building where Yuan Shikai lived from 1912-16. And in Simon Kwan's Chinese Porcelain of the Republic Period, Hong Kong, 2008, pp. 49-54, the author notes the significance of the Taowu Jiandu Gao Baochang jin zhi inscription that is also present on this vase indicating the vessel was made specifically as a tribute article for Yuan Shikai.
The cong form lends itself to the literati landscape painting style that reached a high point during the early 20th century.