Lot Essay
The bowl belongs to an intriguing group of Kangxi coloured-ground wares where the fifth claw of the dragon has been obscured by an overglaze enamel, in the present case with red or green enamel.
A dish with the fifth claw obscured is illustrated by John Ayers, Chinese Ceramics in the Baur Collection, vol. 2, Geneva, 1999, p. 37. Compare with a very similar bowl but with the five claws left unglazed, illustrated in Chinese Porcelain: the S.C. Ko Tianminlou Collection, Part II, Hong Kong, 1987, pl. 91 ; and two others sold by Christie's New York, 1 June 1990, lot 287 and by Christie's Hong Kong, 1 June 2011, lot 3512.
A dish with the fifth claw obscured is illustrated by John Ayers, Chinese Ceramics in the Baur Collection, vol. 2, Geneva, 1999, p. 37. Compare with a very similar bowl but with the five claws left unglazed, illustrated in Chinese Porcelain: the S.C. Ko Tianminlou Collection, Part II, Hong Kong, 1987, pl. 91 ; and two others sold by Christie's New York, 1 June 1990, lot 287 and by Christie's Hong Kong, 1 June 2011, lot 3512.