Brush-washer

Small objects for the scholar's studio, varying in shape and glaze, are one highlights of the Kangxi period. The color of this clair de lune glaze, praised as sky blue in Chinese literature, was the ultimate achievement of a new high-fired glaze with less than one percent cobalt, developed in with the late Kangxi imperial workshop. To celebrate the soft-toned glaze, new forms, mostly for the writing table, appeared. In this fine design, the recessed area around the neck functions as a water-transport for slightly diluting the ink when necessary.