Lot 22 A very rare Chinese blue and white pagoda-shaped incense burner

A very rare Chinese blue and white pagoda-shaped incense burner

Wanli

未知

€ 25.000 – € 50.000

WDH: H. 17,3 cm, W. 10,1 cm, D. 8,7 cm

未知

Modelled in two sections, rising from a hexagonal base to a five-tiered tower with pierced windows and gently upturned roofs. Painted in underglaze cobalt blue with stylised brickwork and vertical bands imitating roof tiles.
Porcelain pagoda models are among the more unusual forms produced at Jingdezhen during the late Ming period and may have served as incense burners or ornamental objects. Their architectural form reflects the enduring fascination with Buddhist sacred architecture and demonstrates the technical skill of late Ming porcelain production.
此塔由上下兩部分組成，下承六方形臺座，其上建五層塔身。各層開鏤空窗，檐角微微上翹。通體以釉下青花描繪磚牆紋及縱向瓦壟紋，摹擬傳統木構樓閣式佛塔的建築細節。
瓷塑塔是晚明景德鎮較為少見的器物造型，或可用作香薰及陳設器。其形制取法佛教塔式建築，反映當時對佛教建築意象的重視，亦展現晚明瓷匠在分段成型、鏤空及結構塑造方面的精湛技藝。
Reference:
A near-identical example with Mayuya-Ma & Co. Ltd., from the Tominaga Satoru Collection, exhibited at the 1939 Shina Bijutsu Daitenrankai (Grand Exhibition of Chinese Art), Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts, Osaka, sold in 2023.
Robert McPherson Antiques, stock no. 26235 for a near-identical part of the top section. (link)
Mashiko Kawahara, 'Ko-sometsuke', fig. 120, for a bell tower-shaped example.
A smaller example with comparable base, described as pagoda-form jar and cover was sold by Christie's in their 14 December 2023 sale, lot no. 620.
Provenance:
Jorge Welsh Works of Art, Lisbon/London, with their label to the base.
The Mr. and Mrs. Baert-Devos Collection, Belgium. Acquired from the above in 2006 and accompanied by a copy of their documentation folder. (see added scan)
Exhibited:
TEFAF Maastricht, Jorge Welsh Works of Art, 2006.