A ZHEJIANG CELADON DUCK-FORM CENSER

MING DYNASTY, 15TH-16TH CENTURY

Details

A ZHEJIANG CELADON DUCK-FORM CENSER
MING DYNASTY, 15TH-16TH CENTURY
The censer is modeled as a duck standing on a wave-form base, with head turned to the side, its overlapping wings and tufted tail, detailed with carved feather markings, are pierced for the release of smoke. The whole is covered with a crackled bluish-green glaze.
8 ¾ in. (22.4 cm.) high, Japanese wood box

Provenance

Yamanaka Shokai, Japan.
Private collection, Japan, since the early 20th century.

Lot Essay

Novelty incense burners in the form of birds were first introduced in the Han dynasty and enjoyed a fair amount of popularity in the Yuan, Ming and Qing periods. A Longquan celadon incense burner dated c. 1450-1550 in the form of a duck standing on a rock and with a removable wing made of gilt-bronze is illustrated by J. Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, p. 498, no. 16:93, along with two other Longquan celadon bird-form censers, one modeled as a pair of birds, the other as a parrot, and a bronze bird-form censer dated 12th-13th century, nos. 16:92, 16:94 and 16:92 (fig. 1), respectively.

More from Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art

View All