Ming Xuande Blue and White Petalled Dragon Brush Wash. This is a blue and white brush wash from the Xuande era. The bottom bears the typical six-character Xuande reign mark. This style of brush wash was popular during the Yongle and Xuande era of early Ming Dynasty. The central part of the brush wash is decorated with a dragon, with another ten adorning the side wall. Both the artistry and material quality are very refined. The dragons are depicted in high detail. The glaze and cobalt are highly refined to remove impurities. Most of the iron has been removed from the body, resulting in very few red iron oxide spots on the foot rim. To achieve fine details, a mix of domestic and Persian cobalt is used. Persian cobalt was available only during the Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty. It is identified by its brilliant sapphire-like tone, together with its characteristic “heap and pile” effect due to the diffusion of the pigments. Another characteristic is the formation of yellow plumes and crystals. Thes are present in all the heavy pigment areas of the vessel. Microscopic Identification and Age Signs. We at Liwen Gallery use microscopic examination to positively identify the period and age of this Xuande charger. The following microscopic features evidence the ancient nature of this porcelain vessel. The underglaze blue pigments are formulated with Persian cobalt. It is identified by formation of yellow plumes with crystals from within the glaze. The attached microscope pictures show distinct crystals that require several hundred years to form. This type of cobalt came from the middle east and was available only during the Yuan dynasty and early part of Ming dynasty, up to the middle of the Chenghua era. The presence of Persian cobalt provides evidence that this is from the Ming dynasty since it has never been successfully duplicated with modern technology. Net-like corrosion lines as well as corrosion pits cover the surface of the glaze. These formations only appear on porcelains several hundred years old. Red iron oxide spots and grains are found on the foot rim. These are formed as a result of seepage of iron oxide molecules that coagulate on unglazed surfaces. These can be found on ancient porcelains from the middle of the Qing dynasty and older. All of the above old age signs are evident on the attached microscope pictures. For further discussion on ancient porcelain authentication, please visit the “About” page of our Liwen Gallery website. A Word about Fakes. A simple search would yield a number of porcelain vessels that appear similar to what we offer here. A closer look, however, would show the difference between the production of a four year art student vs artisans who dedicated their entire life creating object d’art for their emperors. Most of them look very old after the artificial aging process. Centuries old porcelains from imperial kilns keep their new look partly due to the high quality of material used, and partly because imperial porcelains are more likely displayed than actually used. Some high quality reproductions can have certain age signs with artificial glaze crackling, discolored bubbles and even cobalt rust spots, but they would appear very different than what we show here with the microscope pictures. Most of our collections came from Europe, and all items in our collection are authenticated by microscopic examination of age signs as well as visual evaluation of material and style consistent with the era. This approach allows us to positively identify period porcelains that cannot be accomplished via traditional visual inspection.
