Footnotes

清乾隆 窯變釉石榴形尊 陰刻「大清乾隆年製」篆書款

The inspiration for the flambé glaze can be traced back to the splashed Jun wares of the Song dynasty. However, this particular red glaze, derived from copper but also containing lead, was exceptionally unstable and difficult to control in the kiln, resulting in one of the highest failure rates of all Chinese glazes. It was not until an extraordinary technical mastery was re-developed during the Kangxi period, reaching its zenith in the Qianlong reign, that successful flambé-glazed porcelain could be produced, highlighting the quality and rarity of the present lot.

Flambé glazes were only achieved towards the late Kangxi period. In 1722, Father François Xavier d'Entrecolles (1664-1741), stated in a letter: "I was brought a piece of porcelain called yaobian ['flambé] or transmutation. This transmutation happens in the kiln and is caused either by a defect, or from excessive heat or some other unknown cause. This piece which, in the opinion of the worker, was not successful, and was caused by pure chance, is no less beautiful or prized. The worker had planned to make soufflé red vases. One hundred pieces were lost, and the one which I spoke of came from the kiln resembling a piece of agate. If one wanted to run the risks and the expense of different attempts, he could finally find the technique which chance produced only one."

The six-lobed pomegranate shape of the vase would have presented additional possibilities for streaking and pooling for the craftsman to explore.

A similar Qianlong seal mark and period example is in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Catalogue of Ch'ing Dynasty Porcelain in the National Palace Museum. Volume 2, Tokyo, 1981, pl.75; compare also another similar vase, Qianlong mark and period, in the Shanghai Museum, illustrated by Zhou Lili, Shanghai Museum Collections Research Series of: Qing Yongzheng - Xuantong porcelain kiln, Shanghai, 2014, p.105, pl.3-69; a third example, with the same rich purple and blue tones, is illustrated by J.Ayers, Chinese Ceramics in the Baur Collection, vol.2, Geneva, 1999, no.A.291, pl.260.

A similar flambé-glazed 'pomegranate' vase, Qianlong seal mark and of the period, was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 29 May 2013, lot 2287.

瓶石榴形，六瓣花口外撇，溜肩鼓腹，圈足外撇，整器由凹線分為六瓣，器形飽滿端莊。通身施窯變釉，釉質肥潤，釉面晶瑩，器身以高溫紅銅釉為主色調，瓶口、頸部及凹陷處因釉汁流淌而成藍色及月白色，與紅釉冷暖交相輝映，相得益彰，器底部刻「大清乾隆年製」六字三行篆書款。

耶穌傳教士殷弘緒於康熙六十一年（1722年）給奧日神父的信件中即有對「窯變」釉的提及，雍正時期窯變釉在唐英督務下更得以發展。至乾隆一朝，則由之前的「火焰青」逐漸變為紅、藍、月白各色交織花紋，且器形趨於秀美，至嘉慶、道光時便略顯得笨拙。本器器形仿生，作石榴果實狀，紅釉深沉，藍釉光潔，釉面流動感已不像雍正時反覆多變，而顯穩重端莊，為乾隆朝窯變釉典型一例。

與本器相似之例，參看台北故宮博物院藏一件乾隆窯變石榴尊，著錄於《故宮清瓷圖錄：乾隆窯及其他》，卷二，東京，1981年，圖版75；上海博物館藏乾隆一例，見周麗麗，《上海博物館藏品研究大系：清代雍正-宣統官窯瓷器》，上海，2014年，頁105，圖3-69；另見日內瓦鮑氏收藏一例，著錄於J.Ayers，《Chinese Ceramics in the Baur Collection》，卷二，日內瓦，1999年，編號A291，圖版260。