QIANLONG IMPRESSED SIX-CHARACTER SEAL MARK AND OF THE PERIOD (1736-1795)

The form of this vase is based on a jade cong ritual object with a circular core and a square exterior, often with stylised masks carved in horizontal registers at the corners. As early as the Song Dynasty, the Imperial court was fascinated with archaic objects and many wares were produced in imitation of ancient forms, including that of the cong. As such, the present vase may not only be emulating the jade prototype, but also the ceramic form of the Song period.

This type of robin's-egg enamelled vase with the unusual undulating band is rare. Compare to a taller example with nearly identical pattern and glaze in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Monochrome Porcelain, The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 209, no. 188 (fig. 1).