Watermelon-green Glazed Zun Vessel with Incised Cloud and Phoenix Design

The watermelon-green glaze was created in the early Ming dynasty. The copper-based vitreous glaze shows the color of the watermelon peel at low-temperature firing environment. The most well known vessels with watermelon-green glaze were made in official kilns of Jingdezhen dating to the Jiajing reign. This zun vessel is green glazed with carved motifs of clouds and flying phoenixes beneath the glaze layer. A six-character Jiajing reign mark can be seen on the base.