Water-pot

Peachbloom-glazed waterpots of this type with the reign mark were made at the Kangxi imperial kiln for use on scholars' desks. The glaze, one of the successes of late Kangxi ceramics, was used to decorate small objects. Due to an inconsistently controlled reduction atmosphere during firing, the glaze turned an even red in the best cases, a moss green with mottles in less successful firings, and a greenish color over most of the object in the least successful cases. The moss green specks on the peachbloom glaze were appreciated as naturally formed decorations, and were termed jiangdou-hong ("bean-red") for their colors of peach-red ranging to bean-green. This piece, with a white-glazed interior and the rounded edge of the footring illustrates the standard features of such jars.