27 cm. (10 5/8 in.) high

Provenance:A European family collectionThe slightly compressed ovoid body raised on a short circular foot, the exterior painted with five-clawed dragons in flight amidst flaming clouds between a band of stylised pomegranates at the shoulder and another band of foliage at the foot, the neck flanked by a pair of archaistic kui dragon handles above a band of upward leaf lappets and beneath a pendent beaded draperies, the base with a six-character zhuanshu seal mark, all beautifully painted in underglaze blue.It is exceptionally rare to find imperial porcelain pieces dated to the Xianfeng period, quite possibly because vases exemplified by the present lot are usually attributed to the Daoguang period with a Daoguang reign mark at the base instead: see a related example of a blue and white vase decorated with Eight Precious Objects and with a pair of stylised bat handles dated to the Daoguang period in the collection of the Palace Musum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red (III), Hong Kong, 2010, p.165, no.151. The present lot with a Xianfeng mark is therefore an exceptionally rare example which can be attributed to the early Xianfeng period.

Price estimate:
HKD: 1,200,000 - 1,500,000
USD: 153,000 - 191,300

Auction Result:
HKD: 1,416,000