A rare underglaze blue and copper red 'Dragon' basin, Qing dynasty, 18th-19th century. Estimate 6,000 — 8,000 GBP. Photo Sotheby's
of globular form, with deep rounded sides rising from a countersunk base with a short, straight neck, vibrantly painted with four striding dragons and numerous bats in flight reserved on a copper-red ground of overlapping waves, framed above and below by ruyi head borders, the shoulder with a diaper band and a fish roe border at the neck - 38.6cm., 15 1/4 in.
Provenance: Acquired in the 19th century and thence by descent.
Sotheby's. Important Chinese Art, Londres, 13 mai 2015, 11:00 AM