A RARE BLUE AND WHITE ‘EIGHT IMMORTALS’ BEAKER VASE, GU, KANGXI PERIODChina, 1662-1722. The vase is well painted in bright blue tones with ogival-shaped reserves, each enclosing one of the Eight Immortals, four on the neck, two on the convex mid-section, and two on the lower body, all reserved on a diaper ground between various decorative borders.Provenance: From an old French private estate.Condition: Very good condition with some old wear and shallow surface scratches overall, scattered firing irregularities such as pitting, glaze recesses, dark spots. The cobalt-blue with small areas of firing-related fading, as expected from this group. The vase slightly leaning.Weight: 2,740 gDimensions: Height 43.7 cmThe Baxian (Eight Immortals) are a legendary group of Chinese heroes who fight to vanquish evil. Popular during the Tang and Shang dynasties, these Eight Immortals were said to live on a group of five islands in the Bohai Sea. Their stories were first recorded by the Ming dynasty poet Wu Yuantai. Their status as fabled folk icons makes them well-known in popular culture.Literatureparison:A similarly decorated blue and white baluster vase, dated to the Kangxi period, is illustrated in Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red III:plete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, vol. 36, Hong Kong, 2000, page 33, no. 27.Auction resultparison:Type: Closely relatedAuction: Christie’s New York, 21 March 2014, lot 2132Price: USD 37,500 or approx.EUR 45,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: A blue and white beaker vase, Kangxi periodExpert remark:pare the closely related form, subject, decoration with similar panels, geometric bands, and diapered ground. Note the identical size (43.7 cm). Alsopare the cobalt-blue with small areas of firing-related fading, as expected from this group.Auction resultparison:Type: Closely relatedAuction: Sotheby’s New York, 18 September 2007, lot 273Estimate: USD 30,000 or approx.EUR 41,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: A rare blue and white yen-yen vase, Qing dynasty, Kangxi periodExpert remark:pare the closely related subject and decoration with similar panels, geometric bands, and diapered ground. Note the size (45.7 cm) and phoenix tail form.康熙時期罕見青花開光八仙人物花觚中國，1662-1722年。撇口，口沿下收，鼓腹，圈足。口內素白，外壁以錦地青花裝飾，頸部開光四位八仙中的人物，腹部兩位，腳部兩位。