A fine lemon-yellow enamelled cup. Mark and period of Yongzheng

A fine lemon-yellow enamelled cup. Mark and period of Yongzheng. Photo Sotheby's

delicately potted of conical form, supported on a straight foot, enamelled on the exterior in vibrant lemon yellow, the interior and base left white, the base inscribed with a six-character reign mark in underglaze blue within a double circle; 9 cm., 3 1/2 in. Estimate 800,000—1,200,000 HKD. Lot Sold 3,380,000 HKD

PROVENANCE: Christie's Hong Kong, 29th May 2007, lot 1523.

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, London, 1994-2010, vol. 4, no. 1828.

NOTE: The 'lemon-yellow' enamel, which is a pastel tone mixed with white and therefore opaque, was almost only used for small cups and dishes. The present cup is a large example of its type. For a pair of smaller lemon-yellow cups and two pairs of saucers also in the Meiyintang collection, all of Yongzheng mark and period, see Krahl op.cit., vol. 2, nos 908-10, one pair of saucers here included as lot 27. A pair of cups of similar size but of slightly different shape, with the sides not flared, is also in the Baur Collection, Geneva, see John Ayers, Chinese Ceramics in the Baur Collection, Geneva, 1999, vol. 2, pl. 331.

Sotheby's. The Meiyintang Collection - An Important Selection of Imperial Chinese Porcelains. 07 Apr 11. Hong Kong www.sothebys.com