A small black-glazed 'Oil Spot' bowl, Song dynasty - Photo Sotheby's
the deep rounded sides supported on a short, neatly finished foot, the interior rising to a straight but slightly indented rim, covered overall with a lustrous black-brown glaze suffused with glittering silvery 'oil spots' of circular form and varying sizes, the foot dressed with a purplish, dark brown slip, Japanese box (4); Diameter 3 3/8 in., 8.6 cm. Estimation: 20,000 - 30,000 USD
PROVENANCE: Mayuyama & Co., Ltd., Tokyo, acquired between 1960-1969.
NOTE: Two similar bowls are illustrated in Robert D. Mowry, Hare's Fur, Tortoiseshell, and Partridge Feathers, Cambridge, MA., 1996, no. 43a & b, pp. 148-9. The author mentions that the present type of bowl is most likely made at Xiaoyu cun kilns, Hauiren, Shaanxi. He observes that dark colored slip applied to buff colored body on the foot is inspired by the 'oil-spot' bowls made at the Jian Kilns in Fujian which had naturally dark bodies.
Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art. New York | 19 mars 2013 - www.sothebys.com