A NEOLITHIC PAINTED POTTERY DOUBLE GOURD-SHAPED BOTTLE VASE, QIJIA CULTURE, CIRCA 2000 BC

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A NEOLITHIC PAINTED POTTERY DOUBLE GOURD-SHAPED BOTTLE VASE, QIJIA CULTURE, CIRCA 2000 BC Scientific Analysis Report: A thermoluminescence analysis report issued by Oxford Authentication on 3 August 2026, based on sample number C126j57, sets the firing date of both samples taken between 2900 and 4300 years ago, consistent with the dating above. A copy of the report accompanies this lot. Expert’s note: The present vessel belongs to a rare and historically significant group of prehistoric Chinese ceramics formed as a double gourd. First documented in pottery of the Yangshao culture and subsequently continued and elaborated by Qijia potters, this distinctive profile, composed of two swelling chambers joined at a narrow waist, stands among the earliest surviving expressions of a silhouette that was to become ubiquitous in Chinese art. In later centuries, the double gourd, hulu, was endlessly reinterpreted in bronze, lacquer, jade, glass, and porcelain, acquiring rich Daoist and auspicious associations. China, 2050-1700 BC. Boldly decorated with alternate sets of diagonal lines imitating wickerwork encircling the body in horizontal registers divided by line borders, the mouth similarly painted with cross-hatched designs. Well modeled with two ovoid bulbs connected by a pair of handles and surmounted by a flared mouth, all supported on a flat base. Dimensions: Height 35.1 cm The Qijia culture, an early Bronze Age culture of northwestern China, succeeded the neolithic Majiayao culture, inheriting many of its ceramic traditions while introducing new technological and stylistic features. Although painted pottery is less abundant than in the preceding Majiayao tradition, Qijia ceramics are generally more refined, particularly in comparison with those of the Machang phase. Its principal ceramic production comprised plain orange-red earthenware together with red wares coated with a white slip, while the repertoire of vessel forms was remarkably varied, including such characteristic types as small cups and bird-shaped jars, numerous examples of which have been recovered from archaeological excavations. Distinguished by their thin walls and relatively high firing temperatures, Qijia wares demonstrate a notable degree of technical sophistication. For a discussion of Qijia ceramics, see Simon Kwan, Chinese Neolithic Pottery, 2005, p. 35. Literature comparison: Compare a related Qijia painted pottery jar with similar wicker patterns around the body and cross-hatch patterns on the mouth rim, 19 cm high, illustrated in Simon Kwan, Chinese Neolithic Pottery, 2005, p. 248, no. 105, where the author notes that red pottery with red-painted patterns is a special type of Qijia Culture ware. Compare also a Qijia double gourd-shaped ewer with spout and handle, lacking the painted decoration of the present lot, in the Asian Civilisations Museum, accession number 1993-00204. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Christie’s New York, 29 March 2006, lot 364 Price: USD 9,000 or approx. EUR 13,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related form and ware, albeit lacking the painted decoration of the present lot. Note the size (27.9 cm). Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 25 November 2022, lot 830 Price: HKD 69,300 approx. EUR 8,300 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the related form, decoration, and motifs. Note the much smaller size (15 cm).

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