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

Jars of this form with a cover are sometimes called ri yue quan ('sun and moon jar'), or yueya er guan ('jar with crescent moon handles'). Very similar jars include one illustrated by R. Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, London, 1994, vol. II, p. 211, no. 866; one identified specifically as a tea caddy in Empty Vessels, Replenished Minds: The Culture, Practise, and Art of Tea, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 2002, p. 178, no. 156; and another in Qing Imperial Porcelain of the Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong Reigns, Art Gallery, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1995, no. 68. See, also, the example sold at Christie's London, 8 November 2011, lot 323.