An imperial Chinese blue and white 'lotus scroll' meiping vase, Wanli mark and of the period

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H.: 47 cm

Condition: (UV-checked)
- The upper rim with minor superficial glaze loss and one superficial ca. 8 mm chip.
- The upper shoulder with a superficial baking flaw with resulting ca. 3 cm glaze line.
- On the outer shoulder, a slight baking anomaly visible where a slight deformation has occurred. There is a related glaze line along this anomaly of ca. 16 cm.
- Otherwise in good condition, with a number of superficial baking flaws and negligible minor superficial wear throughout.

Provenance:
- A French private collection.
- Nagel, Salzburg, June 16, 2017, lot 338. (Link) (Sold EUR 86.450)

Ref.:
- Enlightening Elegance, Imperial Porcelain of the Mid to Late Ming, The Huaihaitang Collection, p. 380, no. 124, for a similar example.
- Veritas Auctioneers, Portugal, 6 December, 2011, lot 26, for a second example of this vase with numerous baking flaws, lacking the upper section. (Link) (sold EUR 36.000)
- Christie's, New York, 7-8 March, 2006, lot 301, for a third example of this vase, lacking the upper section. (Link) (sold USD 13.200)
- Christie's, London, 11 May, 2015, lot 12, for a large Wanli mark and period meiping vase with phoenixes. (Link) (sold GBP 146.500)
- Sotheby's, 13 May, 2015, lot 118, for a large Wanli mark and period meiping vase with dragons. (Link) (sold GBP 389.000)
- Christie's, New York, 16 November, 1998, for another Wanli mark and period meiping vase from the collection of former American president Herbert Hoover. (Link) (sold GBP 28.750)

A meiping (Chinese: 梅瓶, literally: 'plum vase') is a type of vase traditionally used to display branches of plum blossoms. The meiping was first made of stoneware during the Tang dynasty (618–907). It was originally used as a wine vessel, but since the Song dynasty (960–1279) it also became popular as a plum vase and got its name 'meiping'. It is tall, with a narrow base spreading gracefully into a wide body, followed by a sharply-rounded shoulder, a short and narrow neck, and a small opening.