China, 13^th to 15^th century. Heavily potted, the deep flaring sides rising from a flat base and set over three short cabriole legs, the exterior molded with a band of Bagua trigrams between two raised fillets and freely carved with foliate scrolls, the well with a central aperture framed by a raised disc underneath, covered overall in an even sea-green celadon glaze save for the areas around the aperture, partly burnt to orange in the firing.

Provenance: Sir Alan Campbell, probably acquired in Beijing between 1956 and 1957, and thence by descent within the same family. Sir Alan Campbell (1919-2007) was an English diplomat. His father Hugh Campbell was a silk merchant and the Director of Ilbert & Co, Shanghai. Sir Alan joined the Foreign Office in 1946 and served in Singapore and China. From 1956 to 1957, he was in Beijing as Head of Chancery at the British Legation. He inherited his interest in Chinese porcelain from his parents and was a keen collector. Sir John Addis, the British Ambassador to China from 1972 to 1974 and an authority on Ming porcelain, likely advised him on purchases from the Beijing merchants they both bought from.
Condition: Good condition commensurate with age, with some wear and manufacturing flaws including firing cracks, glaze recesses, kiln grit, and a burst bubble smoothened in the kiln, one foot with a small loss and old repair. The central aperture is clearly intentional and original to the piece, as evidenced by the glaze inside.

Weight: 4,042 g
Dimensions: Diameter 25.2 cm

Literature comparison:
Compare to a similarly decorated censer in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Longquan Celadon of the Ming Dynasty, Taipei, 2009, pp. 226-227, no. 124.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s New York, 11 September 2019, lot 783
Estimate: USD 15,000 or approx. EUR 17,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A large celadon-glazed 'longquan' 'trigram' tripod censer, Ming dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form, decorations, glaze, and aperture in the well. Note the larger size (30.5 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s New York, 29 March 2022, lot 559
Price: USD 18,900 or approx. EUR 18,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A 'Longquan' celadon-glazed 'eight trigrams' censer, Yuan dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form, decorations, glaze, and aperture in the well. Note the smaller size (21.7 cm).



元至明大型龍泉八卦紋三足爐
中國，十三至十五世紀。爐口大於底，斜腹，下承三獸足，中出圓形台，中間有圓孔。器身施青釉，釉色古樸。外壁刻花卉紋，上下裝飾弦紋，腹部飾數道凸起的八卦紋飾。圓臺露胎，成橙色。

來源：Alan Campbell爵士收藏，可能在1956 至1957間購於北京，在同一家族保存至今。Alan Campbell (1919-2007年) 爵士曾是一位英國外交官。他的父親 Hugh Campbell是一位絲綢商人和上海 Ilbert & Co 的董事。Alan Campbell爵士於 1946 年加入外交部，曾在新加坡和中國任職。1956年至1957年，他在北京擔任英國使館大使館主任。他從父母那裡繼承了對中國瓷器的興趣，是一位忠實的收藏家。1972 年至 1974 年間擔任英國駐華大使的John Addis爵士是明代瓷器方面的權威人士，很可能向他推薦他從北京商人那裡購買的物品。
品相：品相極好，年代久遠，有一些磨損和製造缺陷，包括燒製裂紋、釉面凹陷、窯砂和氣泡，一隻腳有小缺損和舊修。 中央的開孔顯然是這件拍品原始狀況，內部的釉料證明了這一點。

重量：4,042 克
尺寸：直徑 25.2 厘米

文獻比較：
比較一件相似裝飾的三足爐，收藏於台北故宮博物館，見《明代龍泉窯青瓷》，台北，2009年，頁226-227，編號124。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：紐約蘇富比，2019年9月11日，lot 783
估價：USD 15,000（相當於今日EUR 17,000）
描述：明龍泉窰青釉八卦紋奩式爐
專家評論：比較非常相近的外形、裝飾、釉面和圓臺。請注意尺寸 (30.5 厘米)較大。

拍賣結果比較：
形制：非常相近
拍賣：紐約蘇富比，2022年3月29日，lot 559
價格：USD 18,900（相當於今日EUR 18,000）
描述：元龍泉窰青釉八卦紋奩式爐
專家評論：比較非常相近的外形、裝飾、釉面和圓臺。請注意尺寸 (21.7 厘米)較小。