Massive Ming-Style Blue and White and Copper-Red "Dragon" Tianqiuping With Applied Relief Dragon

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20th century, bearing an apocryphal Xuande six-character mark
An imposing celestial-globe vase (tianqiuping) of grand exhibition scale, the generously potted … Read more 20th century, bearing an apocryphal Xuande six-character mark
An imposing celestial-globe vase (tianqiuping) of grand exhibition scale, the generously potted spherical body rising to a tall cylindrical neck painted with a lotus scroll beneath a key-fret rim band. The body is boldly decorated in inky underglaze cobalt with a sinuous four-clawed dragon writhing through stylised clouds, its scales meticulously delineated, the beast pursuing a flaming pearl amid tongues of flame rendered in soft underglaze copper-red. Most striking is the second dragon modelled in high relief and applied at the shoulder, its horned head, gaping jaws and clawed limbs emerging dramatically from the vessel wall and coiling toward the neck — a sculptural conceit inspired by celebrated early Ming prototypes. The shoulder is inscribed in underglaze blue with a horizontal six-character mark reading Da Ming Xuande Nian Zhi (大明宣德年製, “Made in the Xuande reign of the Great Ming”), here apocryphal and applied in reverence to the most celebrated reign of early Ming blue and white. The broad base is left unglazed, burnt orange at the rim from the firing. A theatrical decorative statement of formidable presence.
— THE HOUSE —
From The Orient Gates: four generations of the Harb family, Damascene artisans and antique dealers since the 1870s, heirs of the painter Abou Sobhi Al-Tinawi (Muhammad Harb). Every piece is examined, restored and documented in our family ateliers. A certificate of authenticity accompanies every piece.
— DETAILS —
Origin: Jingdezhen, China
Period: 20th century, in the early Ming (Xuande) style
Materials: Porcelain, Underglaze cobalt blue, Underglaze copper-red
Dimensions: Height: 60 cm (23 ½ in.) See less