Ming - Qing Blue and white porcelain Censer with Lion Design

This is a blue-and-white Censer fired at a folk kiln in the Jingdezhen tradition during the late Ming to early Qing dynasties. In Japan, such vessels were also repurposed as water containers for the tea ceremony. The body is cylindrical, featuring ridges reminiscent of bamboo nodes, and is crafted with substantial thickness. The base is left unglazed, beautifully preserving the marks left when the piece was cut from the potter's wheel. The entire body is densely decorated with various blue-and-white patterns. Two lions appear in the center, surrounded by a distinctive motif that could be interpreted as either clouds or arabesque scrolls, connecting to this is a floral design executed in a unique artistic style. Two tiers of wave patterns extend across the lower section. The surface is coated with a slightly cloudy transparent glaze, though there are scattered areas of glaze loss or crawling. This piece belongs to the category known as "Old Blue and White" from China; unlike the products of imperial kilns, these pieces feature free-spirited, expressive painting by artisans from private kilns. Characteristics such as slight line irregularities, bleeding of the blue pigment, and glaze loss at the rim contribute to an imperfect, uneven beauty that has long been cherished by Japanese tea practitioners. There are a few areas where the glaze has flaked off, primarily around the rim and on the body, these occurred during firing and are a common characteristic of blue-and-white ware from folk kilns. It has good luster throughout and is in good condition.