Precious Sothern Song Longquan Ceramics: Kinuta...

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Precious Sothern Song Longquan Ceramics: Kinuta Meiping

Yanchu Zhao

Museum and Art Market

11/18/15

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fig.1

fig.2 fig.3 fig.4

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The Longquan Celadon Kinuta meiping (fig.1) is a very rare and valuable Song ceramics

showing extremely skillful workmanship from Southern Song-Yuan Dynasty (1127-1368).

Its well-potted shape covered with a glaze of soft olive-green tone displays an attenuated

elegance from shoulder to foot. From its place of origin, the rarity of its form and color, the

high value of its comparable works, its comprehensive historical record showing the

authenticity and careful preservation, and its strong market demand throughout time, the

price of the work should go even beyond the extortionate price of most recently sold

meipings from Longquan Kiln in Southern Song-Yuan Dynasty, and would exceed the

estimated price range from $300,000 to $500,000, or fall within the range but closer to

$500,000.1

According to the Collecting Guide: Song Ceramics, the value of the Song ceramics is

first based on the kiln where the object was originally made.2 The most precious ceramics

usually come from Ru, Guan, Ge, Ding, Jun, Longquan, Yaozhou and Cizhou.3 Among

different ceramics from various periods of time, “Longquan celadons, in particular, are

1 Rosemary Scott, “A Rare Longquan Celadon Kinuta Meiping,” Christie’s Auction Results. 2015. http://www.christies.com/lotfinder/lot/a-rare-longquan-celadon-ki-southern-song-yuan-5927883-details.aspx?from=salesummary&intObjectID=5927883&sid=6192fecb-6392-48c0-ba68-bba2c02ebdf9

2 Jessica Chang, “Collecting Guide: Song Ceramics,” Christie’s The Art People. 2015. http://www.christies.com/features/Collecting-Song-ceramics-6375-1.aspx

3 Chang, Christie’s The Art People.

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popular on the market,” said Jessica Chang, a specialist in the Chinese Ceramics and Works

of Art department at Christie’s New York. Because during the Song-Yuan dynasty, the

productions in the kilns were heavily monitored and the accesses to the wares were very

limited to specific groups of people, and imperfect pieces were destroyed to keep them from

ever being circulated, the works that could be kept till today are all very exquisitely made and

carefully preserved.4 The Kinuta meiping was made at the popular Longquan kiln in southern

Zhejiang Province, a prosperous place has important influence both at home and aboard.

“From the ports in the southeast of China to Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Red Sea and coast

line of East Africa, you can see the traces of Longquan Celadon everywhere,” Chen Qiaoyi

stated in Toponymy of Longquan County.5 Also, Longquan kiln came to its golden age in the

Middle and Late time of the Southern Song Dynasty period, the time when the Kinuta

meiping was made, and the technique reached its peak of perfection.6 In this sense, the

Kinuta meiping came from a premium source of origin at a time when the kiln produced its

highest quality works.


5 Qiaoyi Chen, “History of Chinese Longquan Celadon.” Cultural China. http://arts.cultural-‐china.com/en/3A9825A13835.html 6 Fabiowzgogo, “Chinese Longquan Celadon.” 2015. China Travel. http://www.chinatravel.com/facts/chinese-‐longquan-‐celadon.htm

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Another important element that determines the price of Song ceramics is the rarity of its

elegant form and proportion.7 As Chang explained, each kiln has its own specialization in

specific forms and types of glaze, and the difference between each work is sometimes hard to

discern and a specific vocabulary of kiln, glaze type, and form was established to discern the

meticulous differences, considering that numerous copies were made of each piece, both

during the same period of time and long after the value of the masterpiece had already been

recognized. “If the glaze type does not match the form, then this is a big red flag.” In regard

to Song ceramics, the beauty of the vase lies greatly in their simplicity and luscious glazes.

The Kinuta Meiping has an elegant and slim tapering body surmounted by a thin cylindrical

neck with rounded rim. The entire bottle is covered allover in an even glaze of slightly bluish,

sea-green color. The foot rim is unglazed but the line separating the paint and the bottom is

even and exquisite.8 Scott emphasized its distinct and rare beauty in the article “A Rare

Longquan Celadon Kinuta Meiping” that, “The silhouettes and forms are so refined, and the

glazes are so subtle and pure that it is easy to incorporate these exquisite wares into any

interior or collection.”


8 Scott, Christie’s Auction Results.

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Besides the pure and delicate form and color, this Kinuta meiping is extraordinarily

valuable because even though many other vase shapes were made at the Longquan kilns

during the Song and Yuan dynasties, the meiping form was remarkably rare and exceptional

prior to the Ming dynasty. Besides its age, this particular meiping is one of the finest

surviving examples from the period9. “Its glaze has the pure color and soft translucence,

which has been so admired by collectors and connoisseurs in China and Japan for more than

700 years. The neck of the Kinuta meiping is of distinctive form, being slightly longer and

more columnar than the necks seen on later examples,” said Rosemary Scott, the

International Academic Director at Christie’s Asian Art Department.

Despite the very rare existence of early Song meipings and the extraordinary quality of

this particular meiping, some comparable works could still be analyzed to determine the price

of the Kinuta Meiping. A similar shaped celadon meiping vase (fig.2) with a high-shouldered

body surmounted by a short cylindrical neck and a flat everted rim that also from early

Longquan wares of the northern Song period was sold for $212,500, with an much lower

estimation of $80,000 to $100,000, on March 18th, 2008, according to Sotheby’s auction


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record.10 The Kinuta meiping was from the same kiln—Longquan, and produced around the

same period of time, so the price should be around the same range. However, as discussed

above, southern Song’s ceramics made at Longquan reached the peak and usually had better

quality than works from other periods. Also, because of the Kinuta meiping’s more elegant

tapering from shoulder to foot and the extremely pure and translucent glaze throughout the

vase, which is usually more valuable than the carved, pale glazed body shown in the northern

example, the price of the Kinuta meiping should be higher than $212,500.

Another comparable Longquan celadon meiping is the “Fruit and Flowers” meiping

(fig.3) from Yuan Dynasty.11 Compared with the last example, this work has a closer color

but a less similar body shape. The vase has a straighter neck and a more robust body, which

is relatively easier to produce in comparison with the elongated and slender shape, with a

slightly longer and more columnar neck, of the Kinuta meiping. Also, the deeply carved

decorations of exuberant fruits and flowers are common features of Yuan period, and

subsequently less valuable than the rare translucent, glittering, and eloquently greenish body

10 “A Longquan Celadon Meiping Northern Song Dynasty.” Sotheby’s. 2015.

http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2015/song-‐ceramics-‐yang-‐de-‐tang-‐collection-‐n09338/lot.64.html

11 “A Longquan Celadon Fruit And Flowers Meiping Yuan Dynasty.” Sotheby’s. 2014. http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2014/chinese-‐art-‐through-‐the-‐eye-‐of-‐sakamoto-‐goro-‐porcelain-‐hk0559/lot.3504.html

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of the Kinuta meiping. The “Fruit and Flowers” meiping was sold on October 8th, 2014 for

$221,760, which exceeded the estimate of $103,144 - $128,930 by a considerable amount,

according to the Sotheby’s record.12 Thus, in regard with the quality and the rarity, the

Kinuta meiping should be sold at a higher price than “Fruit and Flowers” meiping’s price as

well.

Another comparable work with the most similar glaze and color would be the Ming

Dynasty Longquan celadon meiping with a cover (fig.4), which was sold on December 1st,

2010 for $902,516 at Christie’s HK.13 The covered meiping was made at the same kiln and

during the similar time with the Kinuta meiping. Also, this work has the similar kind of

lustrous glaze, smooth surface, and blue-greenish tone and an equally commanding potting

and elegant shape, but a litter stouter and with a spreading foot. Despite the remarkable

similarities, the meiping with a cover should be even more rare and very likely more

expensive, for its square-cut rim, short conical neck, and bell-shaped cover, which has no

parallel in any other work.14 So, even though the Kinuta meiping’s price should be higher

12 “A Longquan Celadon Fruit And Flowers Meiping Yuan Dynasty.” Sotheby’s.

13 “A Very Rare Ming Longquan Celadon Meiping And A Cover. ” Christie’s The Art People. 2010. http://www.christies.com/lotfinder/lot/a-‐very-‐rare-‐early-‐ming-‐longquan-‐celadon-‐5379749-‐details.aspx 14 “A Very Rare Ming Longquan Celadon Meiping And A Cover. ” Christie’s The Art People.

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than the previous two examples, the price should be lower than $902,516. Also, the price

realized triggered heated debate because the hammer price was much higher than the

estimation of $258,692 - $388,039. Putting this into consideration, the work might involve a

certain degree of speculation and bidding war, and not worth $902,516. Thus, the price of the

Kinuta meiping should be notably lower than $902,516, given that the normal hammer price

of the meiping with a cover would have been a little higher than the estimation, following the

price trend of the most auctioned meipings, and might be around $500,000. Then, the

hammer price for the Kinuta meiping could be around $400,000 to $450,000.

The prices of the three comparable meipings were all realized significantly above the

estimation, nevertheless the abnormally staggering price of the meiping with a cover, so the

price of the Kinuta meiping might go beyond the estimation as well. But since the estimated

range from $300,000 to $500,000 is very broad and the estimated price was higher than the

estimation of all other three examples discussed, considering that the meiping with a cover’s

quality might be better than the Kinuta meiping, the price might also fall with the estimated

range and closer to $500,000.

Also notable is the sufficient demand and the huge market for the meipings in the last

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few years, which could be seen from the fact that their hammer prices all went far beyond the

estimations. In The New York Times’s article “Auctions: China power in porcelain market”,

Souren Melikian researched a lineup of remarkable prices paid for meipings and other

porcelain objects by Chinese bidders, and their continuously growing and expanding market.

“The rising power of China on the auction scene was spectacularly demonstrated in a sale of

early Chinese porcelain,” Melikian stated.15

Regarding the issues of the authenticity and preservation, the Kinuta meiping has a clear

historical record showing the work’s careful preservation in the Mori family in Japan since

1818. According to Scott, from the time the Longquan celadon wares first began to be

imported to Japan in Southern Song period, Japanese connoisseurs have very much treasured

them, and this vase has been kept cautiously and attentively, in the collection of one of

Japan’s most historically important families – the Mori Family, as the labels on the container

indicated.16 “Given the age of the ceramics, fully intact examples are quite rare, so a good

15 Souren Melikian, “The rising power of China on the auction scene was spectacularly demonstrated in a

sale of early Chinese porcelain,” The New York Times, 2003.

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/18/style/18iht-sales_ed3_.html


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restoration is definitely worth the investment,” Chang noted.17

As discussed above, the work is extremely valuable for both art historians and prominent

families. Regarding the Kinuta meiping’s premium kiln, remarkable rarity, painstakingly

exquisite form and color, meticulous preservation, and a clear historical record showing

authenticity, and the comparable works, the Kinuta meiping’s price should be around

$400,000 to $450,000. (The hammer price was actually $317,000).18



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Bibliography

Rosemary Scott, “A Rare Longquan Celadon Kinuta Meiping,” Christie’s Auction Results.

2015.

http://www.christies.com/lotfinder/lot/a-rare-longquan-celadon-ki-southern-song-yuan-

5927883-details.aspx?from=salesummary&intObjectID=5927883&sid=6192fecb-6392

-48c0-ba68-bba2c02ebdf9

Jessica Chang, “Collecting Guide: Song Ceramics,” Christie’s The Art People. 2015.

http://www.christies.com/features/Collecting-Song-ceramics-6375-1.aspx

Qiaoyi Chen, “History of Chinese Longquan Celadon.” Cultural China.

http://arts.cultural-china.com/en/3A9825A13835.html

“A Longquan Celadon Meiping Northern Song Dynasty.” Sotheby’s. 2015.

http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2015/song-ceramics-yang-de-tang-co

llection-n09338/lot.64.html

“A Longquan Celadon Fruit And Flowers Meiping Yuan Dynasty.” Sotheby’s. 2014.

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http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2014/chinese-art-through-the-eye-of-

sakamoto-goro-porcelain-hk0559/lot.3504.html

“A Very Rare Ming Longquan Celadon Meiping And A Cover. ” Christie’s The Art People.

2010.

http://www.christies.com/lotfinder/lot/a-very-rare-early-ming-longquan-celadon-53797

49-details.aspx

Souren Melikian, “The rising power of China on the auction scene was spectacularly

demonstrated in a sale of early Chinese porcelain,” The New York Times, 2003.

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/18/style/18iht-sales_ed3_.html

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