SOUTHERN SONG DYNASTY (1127-1279)

The 'tortoiseshell' glaze was another innovation of the potters at the Jizhou kilns in Jiangxi province during the Song dynasty. Known as 'tortoiseshell' glaze, its name was derived supposedly from its similarity to the shell of a warm-water sea turtle known as the hawksbill. For a discussion of these kilns, and this type of glaze, see R. Mowry, Hare's Fur, Tortoiseshell, and Partridge Feathers, Cambridge, 1996, pp. 225-28. Compare, also, the similar, but larger (16 cm.) bowl, sold in these rooms, 16 September 2010, lot 1309.