A Massive Imperial Black-glazed 'Neifu' stoneware storage jar, Ming dynasty (1368-1644).
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Heavily potted and of ovoid shape with short neck and thick, lipped rim, molded in high relief on the shoulder with two characters nei fu, covered in a clear glaze of straw tone reserved against the black glaze covering the jar inside and out as well as on the base. Height 58,5 cm.
Repaired crack.
Provenance
The characters nei fu (Inner Palace) denote imperial use. They can be seen on ceramic wares, notably wine jars of Cizhou type as early as the 14th Century.
Exhibitions
A very similar jar of the same size and with a nei fu mark, in the Aichi Prefectural Ceramic Museum, illustrated in the catalogue of the special exhibition organized by the Osaka Municipal Museum of Art, Charm of Black & White Ware: Transition of Cizhou Type Wares, Osaka, p 134, no 148., with description on p.190.
A smaller jar with similar relief characters are in the Percival David Foundation, London.
Also compare the smaller jar of this type with dark brown glaze and relief-moulded nei fu characters in the Idemitsu Museum, illustrated in Chinese Ceramics in the Idemitsu Collection, Tokyo, 1987, no 563.
Literature
Medley; The Worlds Great Collections: Oriental Ceramics, Vol 6, Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, London, Tokyo, 1982, p.115, no 75.
More information
Compare a similar jar from the Collection of Dr Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987), New York.