Song Dynasty Cizhou Kiln White Ground Black Carved Interlocking Floral Covered Jar

拍品描述

Dimensions：Maximum Width 18 cm (7.1 in), Overall Height 16.2 cm (6.4 in), 10th–13th Century CECondition & Provenance：The jar and its original matching lid form a complete set, free of cracks, chips, missing pieces or glaze repairs. The white slip ground remains intact, black carved floral lines stay sharp, only covered with natural ancient patina and faint soil stains from long-term burial. The unglazed base foot bears authentic aged clay wear without modern polishing. It was collected by a Hong Kong antique porcelain specialist focusing on Song wares, then acquired by a private vintage ceramic collector based in Miami, Florida, USA in 2024, complete with full provenance files and official appraisal certification.Description：This storage jar is an iconic decorative household porcelain piece from China’s Song Dynasty Cizhou Kiln, the foremost northern folk kiln celebrated for bold black-and-white carved ornamentation that embodies unpretentious, lively civilian aesthetics of the Song era. The vessel boasts a well-proportioned plump silhouette with a short narrow neck, broad rounded belly and exposed unglazed ring foot, paired with an original flat lid topped by a round knob for seamless matching, balancing daily functionality and artistic display. Crafted with Cizhou’s signature slip-carving technique, the pot was coated with white slip first, then covered with a dark black slip layer. Artisans carved away the black slip to reveal crisp white interlocking scrolling floral patterns. Full rounded flower petals are textured with fine comb incised lines inside, creating striking contrast between black background and white floral motifs. Decorative bands wrap around both the jar body and lid, neatly divided by plain white slip horizontal lines for clear layered design. The body is formed from coarse grey-brown northern pottery clay, with bare unglazed foot base showing solid dry clay texture coated in natural aged earth patina. The interior and exterior white slip glaze carries soft gentle luster, marked only by fine natural age crazing without artificial antiquing treatments. Complete Song Cizhou carved jars retaining their original matching lids are quite scarce on the international antique market. This specimen features undamaged full patterns and sharp carving craftsmanship, fully preserving the complete slip carving production workflow of Song Cizhou kilns. It serves as a benchmark physical artifact for academic research on northern folk ceramic manufacturing and Song civilian decorative art, highly sought after by high ancient porcelain collectors across North America, holding outstanding craft research value and reliable long-term market appreciation potential.

图片