Neckless water container

This is a neckless water container with a wide open mouth, a globular body and a flat bi-shaped base (yu bi xing di). The exterior is glazed in black with green specks which resemble tea dust (cha ye mo). The interior is in a light brown glaze with green specks as well, and numerous dark brown splashes. The base of this water container was cleaned and the edges were destroyed in the early 20th century. The ring of the present bi-shaped base is unglazed and smoothly wheeled, exposing the buff body. The recessed center of the base is glazed in light brown with numerous dark brown splashes. The bi-shaped base usually appears in bowls made in the mid to late Tang dynasty. A disc is cut away from the flat base of the bowl, leaving the base with a ring resembling a jade bi. The ring is unglazed and the recessed center may or may not be glazed. The bi-shaped base on this water container is obviously a later copy. Tea dust is a type of Chinese traditional crystalline glaze that appears an opaque glaze-a mixture of olive and brown specks resembling tea dust. These specks are in fact crystals produced by the chemical reaction of iron and manganese with silicates in the glaze. What is now referred to as 'tea dust' actually includes all of the following tones: crabshell green, eel yellow, green orange peel, calipash, yellow mottles and old monk's robe. The dating of this neckless water container with the tea dust glaze is difficult because it does not bear any reign mark or inscription. But, in terms of the shape, glaze and excellent workmanship, this piece may be an antique. Since those vessels with the tea dust glaze made in the Qianlong period of the Qing (1736-1795) tend to have greenish mottles, it is possible that this object may have been produced during that period