HONGZHI SIX-CHARACTER MARK IN UNDERGLAZE BLUE WITHIN A DOUBLE CIRCLE AND OF THE PERIOD (1488-1505)

The present dish, and other yellow-glazed dishes from the Hongzhi period, are known for their flawless quality and exceptional glazes, and are referred to as ‘imperial yellow’ porcelain. A nearly identical dish is illustrated by J. Harrison-Hall in Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, pp. 185-86, no. 7:19. Hall notes that yellow monochrome porcelains from the Hongzhi period are known for their delicate color and clarity of glaze, while yellow dishes from later periods have a deeper glaze.

Compare other Hongzhi-marked, yellow-glazed dishes of this size in the Avery Brundage Collection illustrated by D. Lion-Goldschmidt, Ming Porcelain, New York, 1981, pl. 113; one from the Collection of Dr. and Mrs. E.T. Hall included in the O.C.S. Jubilee Exhibition, The Ceramic Art of China, London, 1971, no. 161, pl. 114; and one from the Tianminlou Collection included in the Min Chiu Society Thirtieth Anniversary Exhibition, Selected Treasures of Chinese Art, Hong Kong Museum of Art, 1990, no. 154.

While most yellow porcelains were reserved for the sole use of the imperial court, some were given as diplomatic gifts. There are five imperial yellow porcelains in the collection of the Topkapi Saray, and a similar Hongzhi-marked yellow-glazed dish is illustrated by J. Ayers and R. Krahl in Chinese Ceramics in the Topkapi Saray Museum Istanbul, vol. 2, Yuan and Ming Dynasty Porcelains, London, 1986, p. 447, no. 774, TKS 15/2725.