QIANLONG SIX-CHARACTER SEAL MARK IN UNDERGLAZE BLUE AND OF THE PERIOD (1736-1795)

The Emperors Yongzheng and Qianlong were keen antiquarians who collected and studied material from earlier dynasties. Deliberate copies of Song crackled glazes were therefore developed at the Qing imperial kilns in response to the emperors’ admiration for these early wares. It was recorded that the Yongzheng Emperor had specifically required good copies of Song glazes to be produced at Jingdezhen, at which the famous kiln director Tang Ying excelled. Tang Ying, in his Taocheng jishi bei ji (Commemorative Stele on Ceramic Production), listed out a number of glazes in imitation of Song wares, including ‘moon-white, pale green and deep green, all copied from ancient pieces sent from the Imperial Palace’.

Compare to a larger crackled Ru-type glazed vase (26.8 cm) of similar shape from the Nanjing Museum, illustrated in Treasures in the Royalty: The Official Kiln Porcelain of the Chinese Qing Dynasty, Shanghai, 2003, p. 332. Compare also to a smaller Ru-type crackled glazed vase (17.2 cm) of similar form but with a gently flared mouth from the Stephen Junkunc, III Collection, sold at Christie’s New York, 19 March 2008, lot 658.