WANLI SIX-CHARACTER MARK IN UNDERGLAZE BLUE WITHIN A DOUBLE CIRCLE AND OF THE PERIOD (1573-1620)

Based on the ancient ritual bronze form known as a gu, Wanli mark-and-period vases of this shape and large size are very rare.

A nearly identical Wanli wucai vase to the present example, and of the same size, is in the Palace Museum, Beijing, and illustrated in Porcelains in Polychrome and Contrasting Colors – 38 - The Complete Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 36, no. 33. (Fig. 1) This same vase is also illustrated in Imperial Porcelains from the Reign of Jiajing, Longqing and Wanli in the Ming Dynasty, Beijing, 2018, pp. 654-5, no. 388. It is interesting to note that on both the Beijing vase and the current vase, the iron-red dragons on the central section are shown descending and pursuing flaming pearls, while the alternating green and blue dragons are shown ascending and writhing amidst cruciform cloud motifs centered by lingzhi heads.

Two Wanli wucai vases of related form, but with more compressed bulbous midsections decorated with pheasants amidst ornamental rocks between bands of writhing dragons on the neck and flared foot, were sold in Chinese Art from The Art Institute of Chicago; Christie’s New York, 12 September 2019, lots 707 and 708. Formerly in the collection Russell Tyson (1867-1963), both of the Chicago vases are reduced at the neck but would likely have been of approximately the same size as the current vase.