Bowl with Incised Design of Peony-Scrolls and a Dragon, White Porcelain

The Ding kilns of Hebei province were renowned for their production of white porcelains from the Five dynasties through the Yuan dynasty, and there are many particularly fine examples of white porcelain decorated with slanted-cut incised decorations dating from the Northern Song dynasty. This bowl has a six-cut foliate rim, and the center of its interior is decorated with a dragon motif. The inner surface of the bowl are incised with a slanted-cut pattern of four sections of peony and vine motifs. Other than the rim edge, which was left unglazed to accomodate the facedown firing of the work, the entire white body clay surface is covered with a transparent glaze. Kiln conditions meant that the bowl fired to an ivory color overall. The outer surface of the bowl reveals the glaze flow typical of Ding ware pieces, and there are traces of the clamps often used in the restoration of Chinese ceramics.