A RARE MOTHER-OF-PEARL-INLAID BLACK LACQUERED PORCELAIN VASE Yongzheng The body of the vase decorated in mother-of-pearl inlay against black lacquered porcelain depicting scholars and their attendants surrounded by bamboo and admiring the moonlit landscape of islands and a pavilion across a lake, the waisted neck depicting a solitary scholar on a boat navigating through a riverscape and bordered by geometric bands, the white porcelain body visible on the interior and the base. 23cm (9in) high. Footnotes: Please note this Lot is to be sold at No Reserve. 本拍品不設底價 清雍正 瓷胎漆地嵌螺鈿瓶 Provenance: Acquired from Robert McPherson Antiques, London, 11th May 2009 (the marriage dish) (collector's notes) Published and Illustrated: M. White, Living at the Whites' House: Ceramics from the Mary and Peter White collection, vol.4, n.p, 2023, p.318 Inlaying mother-of-pearl into lacquered porcelain is incredibly challenging and hence few examples of such techniques have survived. The abalone (Haliotis) shell is chosen for its iridescent and eye-catching colours, often paired with further silver and gold foil inlay to make the scenes come alive. The present lot demonstrates the use of mother-of-pearl dust to create the effect of shimmering moonlight on the mountainous background and on the earth in the foreground. This creates a more painterly effect that complements the mosaic style of the main scene. The fusion of such styles likely came about from workshop neighbours in the Forbidden City's Zaobanchu (Imperial Manufacture Department) exchanging inspiration. A larger vase, 42cm high, of similar shape and decoration is illustrated in K. William, Kulturens årsbok, Stockholm, 1937, p.75 See a similarly decorated rouleau vase, Kangxi, sold at Sotheby's Paris, 11th June 2019, lot 8. See also a similar vase, Qianlong, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (79.2.101). For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing