A Pair Of Chinese Blue And White Porcelain Jars From The Hatcher Cargo C.1643

A Pair of Chinese Blue and White Porcelain Jars from the Hatcher Cargo c.1643

Two large octagonal baluster jars with covers, decorated with various flower and fruit sprays

Late Ming, Wanli / early Transitional, circa 1643

Height: 37 cm (each)

Provenance
Hatcher Cargo auction, Christie’s Amsterdam, 12-13 June 1984 (one with the original sticker)
Private collection, The Netherlands

A very interesting and good pair of Chinese mid-17th-century vases with covers from the celebrated Hatcher Cargo. The Hatcher Cargo was recovered from the wreck of a Chinese junk in the South China seas port of Batavia (today Jakarta) by Captain Michael Hatcher in 1983, and was later sold in the Netherlands. They were a small part of what, at the time, was the largest cargo of Chinese porcelain ever recovered in good condition from the sea.

A similar pair of lidded jars from the Hatcher Cargo was sold at Christie's in 2017 for USD 7500 (see last image).

Both generally in good condition.
- The glaze somewhat degraded and stained due to long time immersion in sea water
- The rims with typical small chips and fritting.