Fine Rare Chinese Yuan Dynasty Burnished Black Pottery Bottle / Vase

This very rare and attractive pottery vase, or bottle, of "yuhuchun" (pear-shaped) form is finely-potted and has a highly polished surface, very smooth to the touch. It has a flared mouth and stands on a fairly sturdy flared foot. In places on the surface there is a silvery-blueish "metallic" sheen, a result of long burial. Simply exquisite !

Height 23 cm (9 inches)...

Fine & Rare Chinese Yuan Dynasty Black Pottery Censer

We have recently been lucky enough to have acquired a collection of very rare examples of burnished black pottery items made during the Yuan Dynasty (AD 1279 - 1368). Such items are relatively unknown and very little has been published about them. They are found in the northern provinces, particularly Gansu province in the north-west.

A black pottery censer; it is quite heavily-potted with a wide flat rim and three legs...

Fine & Rare Chinese Southern Song Dynasty Qingbai Glazed Porcelain Dish (with carved & moulded decoration)

This attractive porcelain dish, or shallow bowl, was made during the Southern Song Dynasty (AD 1127 - 1279). It is coated in a finely-crackled pale greenish translucent qingbai glaze, save for the rim and flat base that remain intentionally unglazed...

Fine Rare Chinese Song / Yuan Dynasty Inscribed Buddhist Sanskrit Pottery Jar

This very rare and fascinating pottery jar was made around the 13th - 14th century during the Song Dynasty (AD 960 - 1279) or possibly the Yuan Dynasty (AD 1279 - 1368) and has been excavated from a Buddhist site in Yunnan province, at the time a particularly isolated part of China...

Fine & Rare Chinese Ming Dynasty Blue & White Kraak Porcelain Dish

This very rare and unusual fine quality moulded "kraak" porcelain dish was made toward the end of the Wanli reign (1573 - 1620) of the Ming Dynasty at the famous Jingdezhen kilns. It has a scalloped cavetto and the underglaze pattern is a deep blue. The central design features a butterfly and a grasshopper on a rock within an attractive landscape...

Fine & Rare Chinese Ming Dynasty Blue & White Kraak Porcelain Dish

This fine "kraak" porcelain dish was made in the late 16th century, during the Wanli reign (1573 - 1620) of the Ming Dynasty, or possibly slightly later. The dish has a moulded lobed cavetto and is decorated in underglaze blue of good colour...

Fine & Rare Chinese Ming Dynasty Blue & White Kraak Porcelain Dish

This fine "kraak" porcelain dish was made in the late 16th century, during the Wanli reign (1573 - 1620) of the Ming Dynasty, or possibly slightly later. The dish has a moulded lobed cavetto and is decorated in underglaze blue of good colour...

Fine & Rare Chinese Jin Dynasty Painted Pottery Tile - Musician

This impressive pottery tile was made during the Jin Dynasty (AD 1115 - 1234). It is made from a relatively high-fired grey pottery that has been cold-painted in various coloured pigments, traces of which still remain.

Theatre, the arts, music, performances were a very popular part of life during this period in Shanxi province, from where this tile has been excavated...

Fine & Rare Chinese Jin Dynasty Painted Pottery Tile - Entertainer

This impressive pottery tile was made during the Jin Dynasty (AD 1115 - 1234). It is made from a relatively high-fired grey pottery that has been cold-painted in various coloured pigments, traces of which still remain.

Theatre, the arts, music, performances were a very popular part of life during this period in Shanxi province, from where this tile has been excavated...

Porcelain cup with curved sides, with a hand painted blue decor on a white background representing a landscape showing on the left side a rocky lakeshore with two old men sitting under a gnarled tree, and the right side a fisherman rowing on a boat. Above the scenery, a four line inscription. Two character mark beneath. The rim is protected by a bronze circle, but this is not meant to hide any blemish. China, Qing Dynasty. Height: 3,3 cm. Diameter: 11,4 cm. Very good condition.

Fine Pair of Tall Chinese Song / Yuan Dynasty Qingbai Porcelain Jars   

This fine pair of tall and impressive porcelain jars was made in the 13th - 14th century, toward the end of the Song Dynasty (AD 960 - 1279) or the Yuan Dynasty (AD 1279 - 1368). Interestingly they have been made in several sections that have been luted together. They are coated in a finely-crackled greenish-blue qingbai glaze of very good colour.

This is a true matching pair...

Fine Pair of Tall Chinese Song Dynasty Qingbai Porcelain Dragon Jars   

This fine pair of tall and impressive porcelain jars was made in the Song Dynasty (AD 960 - 1279), more specifically around the 11th - 12th century. This type of tall qingbai-glazed porcelain jar was made throughout the 11th to 14th centuries, although the later versions tend to be more "coarse", more thinly-potted and made from multiple moulded sections luted together...

A rare finely painted pair of underglaze blue decorated dragon and phoenix 'wedding' dishes made in Jingdezhen, southern China, and exported to Europe in the late 19th or early 20th Century during the reign of the Guangxu emperor (1875-1908). Condition: there are some production iron marks;there is a 1.5cm hairline visible on the back of the phoenix dish and there is a light 2.5cm hairline to the rim of the dragon dish...

A Fine Pair of Large Chinese Ming Dynasty Painted Pottery Tiles - Qilin, Sun & Moon

This fine and impressive pair of pottery tiles was made during the Ming Dynasty (AD 1368 - 1644). They are made of a dense grey pottery, quite highly-fired, and have been "cold painted" in black, white, green and orange pigments. Each tile features, in high relief and in great detail, a qilin (a mythical creature with antlers, cloven hooves and several features of the dragon)...

Fine Pair Chinese Ming Dynasty Painted Pottery Tiles - Flying Horses

This fine pair of pottery tiles was made during the Ming Dynasty (AD 1368 - 1644). They are made of a dense grey pottery, quite highly-fired, and have been "cold painted" in various coloured pigments. Each tile features, in high relief and in great detail, a flying horse surrounded by clouds and, possibly, waves...

Fine Pair Chinese Ming Dynasty Painted Pottery Tiles - Deer & Lion Dog

This fine pair of pottery tiles was made during the Ming Dynasty (AD 1368 - 1644). They are made of a dense grey pottery, quite highly-fired, and have been "cold painted" in various coloured pigments. Each tile is decorated in high relief and in fine detail. The tile on the left features a deer standing in a rocky landscape holding in its mouth a lotus flower. The tile on the right features a Buddhistic lion dog playing w...

A very rare and fine blue and white dish, well balance and slight thickly potted, decorated to interior slight concave center with three clouds and plain to cavetto, encircled vividly classic scrolls to rim. The exterior painted with a pair of dragon among clouds. Early Ming dynasty Hongwu period. Condition is absolutely perfect. Diameter: 22 cm.

Rare Finely Detailed Chinese Song Dynasty Incised Celadon Porcelain Bowl

This very attractive porcelain bowl was made during the 12th or 13th century at one of the kilns in Fujian province, where such wares were made for export around south-east Asia; indeed the silky-matt feel and appearance of the glaze suggest this bowl has been recovered from a shipwreck.

The incised pattern is particularly fine and well-executed. In the centre is what appears to be a lotus flower surrounded by flor...