Cup

After more than a century the famous Chenghua red glaze survived as a widespread legend until the Qing, when the glaze was revived, as witnessed on this piece with a fifteenth century reign mark. On the base, tiny needle holes were artificially applied to imitate the "orange peel" effect of the Ming glaze. The mark, enclosed in a square, was presented in a classical format for inscriptions. Otherwise the craftsmanship indicates manufacture by of the Qing imperial shop. The six-character mark reads daming Chenghua ninazhi ("produced during the Chenghua reign of the great Ming dynasty").