Description † A JIAN WARE 'OIL SPOT' CONICAL CERAMIC BOWLChina, Song Dynasty (960-1279). Of conical form, rising from a short foot to a wide mouth, covered inside and out with a thick lustrous brown glaze suffused with silvery black streaks. The glaze ends irregularly around the foot to expose the chocolate brown stoneware body.Condition: Very good condition, minor wear, few light surface scratches. Provenance: Private collection, Bangkok, Thailand. Acquired in the Japanese auction trade.Weight: 280 gDimensions: Diameter 12.3 cmConical bowls were intended primarily for the drinking of tea. The choice of tea during the Song and Jin periods was a white tea that was whisked to produce a white froth on top. Black-glazed bowls such as the present example became increasingly popular as they showed off the frothy white tea to great advantage.Auction result comparison:Compare a related Jian 'oil-spot' black glazed bowl, Song dynasty (960-1279), 12.5 cm diameter, sold at Christie's Hong Kong in The Yiqingge Collection of Chinese Ceramics on 29 May 2013, lot 2002, forHKD 1,950,000.