China. Delicately potted, the square vase with a gently spreading foot and short tapered neck, molded to each side with the Eight Trigrams (bagua) and covered overall in a vibrant mottled turquoise-blue glaze suffused with lavender.

Provenance: Weisbrod & Dy Ltd. Fine Oriental Works of Art, New York, 1981. Collection of Emanuel M. Sulkes, acquired from the above and thence by descent in the same family. The base with an old label from Weisbrod & Dy Ltd. inscribed ‘926’. Copies of an invoice and two appraisals from Weisbrod & Dy Ltd. addressed to E. M. Sulkes, confirming the dating and provenance stated above, accompany this lot. Michael B. Weisbrod is a noted scholar of Chinese art, who has published extensively on the subject over a time span of more than 50 years. In 1972, Michael joined his father Dr. Gerald Weisbrod’s Asian art gallery in Toronto, Canada. The father-and-son team opened their New York location on Madison Avenue in 1977, and during the next 45 years the gallery held a significant number of exhibitions, selling to museums and private collectors across the globe, eventually adding further locations in Shanghai and Hong Kong. Emanuel ‘Manny’ Sulkes (d. 2006) was a captain in the United States Army during World War II and owner of International Building Products for 60 years. He served as president of the Oriental Art Society and the Archives of American Art.
Condition: Excellent condition with minor wear and firing irregularities.

Weight: 276.6 g
Dimensions: Height 12 cm

Advances in technology and experimentation at the Imperial kilns during the 18th century led to the introduction of various new intriguing monochrome glazes. The 'Robin's-Egg' glaze is generally thought to have been developed as a free interpretation of Song dynasty Jun glazes and reflects the contemporary interest in producing glazes that were both attractive in color but also innovative in their use of texture. The extraordinary effect of the robin's-egg glaze is achieved with the use of copper and arsenic as an opacifier to create an opaque stippled turquoise glaze.

Literature comparison:
Compare a related larger example of a robin's-egg glazed cong dated to the Qianlong period, in the Qing Court Collection in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Monochrome Porcelain. The Complete Collection of the Treasures of the Palace Museum, Shanghai, 1999, p. 209, no. 188.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams Hong Kong, 24 November 2013, lot 234
Price: HKD 600,000 or approx. EUR 90,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An archaistic robin's-egg glazed vase, cong, 18th century
Expert remark: Compare the closely related cong form, robin’s-egg glaze, and relief decoration. Note the similar size (14.4 cm).