Summary

 

Item:  Chinese Jun Kiln (鈞窯) Flower Vase

Material:  Biscuit Stoneware body, with a Jun Kiln, Opalescent, Soft Blue Glaze with a Purple Splashed Overglaze

Country:  China, Henan Province

Dynasty: Yuan Dynasty

Est. Date: 1279—1368 AD

Country/Province: China, Henan Province

Approximate Measurements:

·       Height:  7.31” (186mm)

·       Weight:  1.60 lb. (25.7 oz.) (728gr)

·       Diameter: 4.16 (106mm)

·       Flared Mouth:  1.29” (33mm)

·       Foot Diameter: 2.22” (56mm)

 

Details

 

This lovely, Chinese flower vase was made at the famous Jun Kilns (鈞窯) about 700-years-ago, and dates to about the early Yuan Dynasty (1279—1368).  It was during the prior Song Dynasty that the Jun kiln first developed this opalescent, bluish glaze for the restricted use for only the Song Emperor.  In comparison to the other important Song wares of Guan, Ge, Ru and Ding, the bodies of Jun wares are more thickly potted, which is a contributing factor to the more simplistic forms – as well as the thick, viscous glazes.

 

 

It was during the Yuan Dynasty that the Jun kilns began producing their trademark “Jun glaze” for a wider customer base.  Because of expanded, worldwide trade with China during the Yuan Dynasty in the 13^th and 14^th centuries, this unique glaze became renowned throughout the world for its flamboyant appearance as a bright blue glaze.  Both the light blue and purple colors are first seen in Chinese pottery in Jun wares.

 

 

This lovely, Jun Kiln (鈞窯) bowl is robustly potted in stoneware and has deeply rounded sides that are supported on a short, neatly finished foot.  This 7.31” vase with a short neck has a thickly-potted, biscuit stoneware body. The control of both temperature and duration of firing was crucial to both the color and texture of Jun glazes, and had to be finely judged by the kiln master.

 

 

Its broad, rising shoulders are accentuated by one, dramatic, purple splash over-glaze that also creates a colorful contrast to the thick, bright blue glaze.  The exterior of the vase shows period-correct crazing, also called a “crackle finish.”  Jun wares were often enhanced with the introduction of these “crackles” — a result of the glaze cooling faster than the body after firing and contracting on the surface.

 

 

The vase was first fired at high-temperature and then fired a second time with the Jun kiln’s thick, opalescent blue glaze with streaks of purple highlights.  The thick, Jun glaze thins as it flowed from the mouth of the vase and the edges of the mouth thinning to mushroom on the rim and falling in an irregular line above the neatly cut foot. The foot and countersunk base are unglazed, with the exception of glaze drops, exposing the grayish-brown biscuit body. olive-brown color.  As the Jun glaze flowed to the bottom of the vase, it pooled and stops about 1.00” (25mm) short of the countersunk base, which is knife cut and period correct.  One can see droplets of the blue glaze on the biscuit stoneware body at the base. 

 

 

The style, shape, glazes, crazing, overall finish, and other details help to identify it as an authentic piece of Jun ware made during the Yuan Dynasty over 700-years-ago during the 13^th—14^th Centuries. The base of the vase also shows the kiln mark where it was made. {please see macro photos}

 

 

For the advanced private collector, this is a must-have piece!

 

Jun Ware Kilns in China

 

The unique, Jun ware glaze on this vase is a complex, blue glaze that was developed in China’s Henan Province during the Northern Song and Jin Dynasties.  Jun wares were named after Junzhou from where the Imperial kilns originated. The old kiln site is located in the present Yuzhou City (Yu County) of the Henan province, which was once under the administration of the Junzhou (Jun Prefecture).

 

 

According to tradition, the Jun ware bowls were first made only for the Imperial Court during the Song Dynasty.  All pieces not delivered to the court was said to have been smashed.  Only during the following Yuan dynasty, were pieces with Jun glaze available for purchase outside of the Imperial Court.  Excavations of the Baguadong and Juntai kiln sites during 1974-75 has proved that the former was the kiln that fired tribute wares for the use of Emperor Huizong of the Northern Song.  From the late Jin to Yuan Dynasties, some kilns in Hebei, Shanxi and Inner Mongolia also began to imitate it.

 

 

The Jun glaze is renowned throughout the world for its flamboyant appearance as a soft blue glaze. Technically, it is an unusual type of glaze in that it is not a blue glass at all. The color in Jun is due to reflected light caused by the glaze structure being opalescent; the minute bubbles and phase separation of the glass as it cools gives an opal effect resulting in a vivid blue appearance. Interestingly, the glaze itself when examined through transmitted light is actually yellow.

 

The Jun kiln made use of iron and copper colorants to fire an opacified bluish glaze with variations, such as:  opalescent white/light sky-blue, or moon-white and red or purple splashes. Normally the glaze was applied to a biscuit body, such as is found on this lovely vase. 

 

 

During the Jun and Yuan Dynasties, many kilns in the Henan province manufactured Jun ware and many kilns in the Hebei and the Shanxi provinces produced its imitations. The production increased dramatically in the Yuan Dynasty and many large vessels were fired to meet the demand of a wealthy, upper class.  However, the body was coarser, and the glaze often stopped halfway downwards on vessels such as dishes and bowls.

 

Technical aspects of the Jun glaze and firing

 

The glaze of Jun ware is always thick and opaque. It is often very thin or absent around the rim, but thick at the foot, where it typically leaves a small part uncovered. Both the light blue and purple colors are first seen in Chinese pottery in Jun wares. The purple areas are caused by the addition of a solution including copper splashed or painted onto the body between glazing and firing. Some blue or green comes from iron oxide in the glaze, combined with firing in a reducing atmosphere.

 

At high temperature the glaze produced "spontaneous unmixing ... into silica-rich and lime-rich glasses", which through phase separation gives an opalescent final appearance: "The tiny spherules of lime-rich glass scatter blue light, producing a strong bluish cast". The fact that particles or inhomogeneities smaller than a light wavelength preferentially scatter blue light is known as Rayleigh scattering. The glaze contains large numbers of tiny bubbles, from gases produced in the glaze during firing. These, though invisible to the naked eye, contribute to the visual effect of the pieces. In many pieces they leave the glaze rather rough to the touch, though the finest pieces avoid this, perhaps by grinding the materials very finely. Applying more than one layer of glaze appears to have been common.

 

Estimated Pre-Auction Value

 

REFERENCES:

 

•       The Ancestral Landscape, David N. Knightley, 2000

•       Chinese Characters, Dr. L. Wieger, S.J.

•       Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC

•       Archaeology, Archaeological Institute of America, Feb/March 2015

•       Shanghai Museum, China

•       Museum of Chinese History, Beijing, China

•       National Palace Museum, Taipei, Taiwan

•       British Museum, UK

•       Smithsonian Museum, Sackler & Freer Gallery, WDC

 

 

 

The colors used in this blue vase were not chosen just for their beauty, but also for their symbolism in the Buddhist religion. So, color symbolism is used in a wide variety of fascinating ways in Buddhist art and ritual. In Buddhism, each of five colors (pancha-varna: which are Blue, Black, Red, Green and Yellow) symbolizes a state of mind, a celestial Buddha, a part of the body, a part of the mantra word Hum, or a natural element. It is believed that by meditating on the individual colors, which contain their respective essences and are associated with a particular Buddha or Bodhisattva, spiritual transformations can be achieved. {Reference:  Religion Facts--Buddhism.}

Please see photos for details as they are part of the description.  Thank You!