A blue and white 'dragon' bottle vase


Jiaqing seal mark and of the periodBoldly painted around the exterior in underglaze-blue with three writhing five-clawed dragons pursuing the flaming pearl amidst flames and ruyi-head clouds, all above crashing waves, the mouth-rim with a band of pendent ruyi-heads and the foot with a leiwen band. 35cm (12in) high.
|A blue and white Jiaqing mark and period vase of the same form and painted with the same borders, but with numerous striding and writhing dragons amidst cloud scrolls, in the Qing Court Collection is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Blue and White Porcelain with Underglaze Red, vol.III, Hong Kong, 2000, pl.143.Compare with a similar vase, Jiaqing, which was sold at Sotheby's New York, 13 September 2017, lot 22. Another similar blue and white vase, Jiaqing, was sold at Bonhams San Francisco, 16th December 2014, lot 8331.