A very rare and impressive 'Yue' celadon-glazed bear-form jar, Western Jin dynasty

Christie's Hong Kong, 3rd-4th November 1996, lot 701.

This remarkable Yue celadon-glazed bear-form jar stands out for its highly unusual and sculptural conception and notable large size, combining vessel and figural form into a single object. Modeled as a seated bear with a rounded body, curled legs, and articulated paws held to the chest, the jar transforms the powerful animal into a functional container, with the mouth of the vessel discreetly incorporated at the top of the bear's head. The bear’s features, including the rounded eyes, protruding snout, and incised fur markings, are rendered with a combination of stylization and naturalism characteristic of early Yue wares. Such bear-shaped vessels are exceedingly rare within the Yue ceramic tradition, where utilitarian forms predominate, making this jar an exceptional surviving example that demonstrates the imaginative nature of ceramic production during the Western Jin period.

Compare a related celadon-glazed jar modeled with a similarly rendered bear-form beast, dated to the second year of Yongning (302 AD) of the Western Jin dynasty, excavated in Zhoumudun, Yixing county, Jiangsu province, in 1976, now in the Nanjing Museum, and published in Zhongguo Meishu Quanji. Gongyi Meishu Bian: Taoci [Complete Series on Chinese Art. Arts and Crafts Section: Ceramics], Shanghai, 1991, vol. 1, pl. 189. See also a related small Yue celadon-glazed bear-form waterpot from a Japanese collection, illustrated in G. St. G. M. Gompertz, Chinese Celadon Wares, London and Boston, 1980, p. 43, fig. 6A, together with a bear-form lamp from the Percival David Foundation, p. 47, fig. 8A.