YUAN DYNASTY 1279 – 1368 Qingbai Ware

A Yuan Qingbai Porcelain Vase, 14th Century. The Moulded Baluster Form is Supported by a Broad Flaring Base.

This vase is constructed from a type of low-fired, rather porous clay, it also has a crackled glaze. This appears to be similar to the well know funerary vases and covers with applied decoration. Presumably they were both made in the same kilns or at least in the same area of China, most probably Fujian Province.

SOLD

Condition
In good condition, the glaze is finely crazed. There is some very minor wear to the rim and the raised decoration.
Size
Height : 13.5 cm (5 3/4 inches)
Provenance
A Private English Collection Purchased in China c.1980-1995.
Stock number
21664
References
For two related Yuan Qingbai vases with pierced sections see ; Bright as Silver, White as Snow, Chinese White Ceramics from the Late Tang to the Yuan Dynasty, Examples from the Kai-Yin Lo Collection (Various authors, Yumingtang 1998. ISBN 962-7502-39-1) page 200, plate 58.

Photos

Information

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.