SONG 11th or 12th Century Miniature Cup and Saucer.
A Song miniature Qingbai cup and saucer 11th or 12th century. The thinly moulded porcelain cup and saucer has a glaze pooling which exhibits a strong blue green hue. This cup and saucer could be a child’s toy or a Mingqi object made for burial.
SOLD
- Condition
- In excellent condition, some crazing to the thicker areas of the glaze.
- Size
- Diameter saucer : 5 .5 cm (2 1/4 inches)
- Provenance
- From a Private Collection
- Stock number
- 24538
Photos
Information
There are some rare Song miniature cups and saucers that have been made as a model of a bowl and saucer rather than being a functional one. The bowl was attached to its saucer during its manufacture, therefore it is a representation of a bowl and saucer, rather than being anything that could function. Much speculation surrounds early Chinese miniatures but it would seam this piece at least is Mingqi ware, made specifically for burial.
Qingbai Ware :
The earliest known qingbai wares were produced in Jingdezhen in Jiangxi province around the late 10th century and are characterized by faint pale-blue glazes on low, wide forms. Qingbai continued to be enormously popular and highly produced throughout the Song dynasty (960-1279) and was prevalent in the Yuan dynasty (1279-1368), but slackened during the Ming dynasty (1368-1644) until being replaced by tianbai, ‘sweet white’ ware. The initial forms of qingbai were simple bowls and dishes, but by the mid-Northern Song the forms had advanced to include a wide variety of objects used for daily life such as ewers, boxes, incense burners, granary models, vases, jars, sculptures, cups, cupstands, water droppers, lamps, grave wares, and tools for writing and painting. The precedent for the majority of these forms is found in earlier metalwork and lacquer and Rawson has suggested that the imitation of silver was the primary force behind the production of white wares, including qingbai. See our `History` section for more information about Song Porcelain and Stoneware by Mindy M. McDonald.