This piece is simple and dignified in style, and is a typical decorative porcelain used in the Song Dynasty court.
Opalescent-Blue Glazed Zun, Jun Ware 钧窑月白釉出戟尊
Porcelain | Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) | H: 32.6 cm, D (mouth): 26 cm, D (base): 21 cm | Collection of The Palace Museum, Beijing. 瓷器｜北宋（960~1127年）｜高32.6厘米，口径26厘米，足径21厘米｜北京故宫博物院藏 1
Characterised by their thickly potted and complex, opalescent blue glazes, Jun ware dates back around 1000 years to the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127). Considered to be among the “Five Great Kilns” of the Song Dynasty along with Guan, Ge, Ru, and Ding wares, Jun ware continues to be sought after by collectors today, in part for their understated yet contemporary aesthetic.
This vessel, modelled after an ancient bronze zun (wine vessel), features a flared rim, a long, trumpet-shaped neck leading to a bulging belly, and a short, ring-shaped foot flared outwards. The exterior neck, belly, and foot are each decorated with four prominent square ridges, hence the name “Chuji Zun” 出戟尊 (literally “Vase with Protruding Ridges”).
The entire vessel is covered in a moon-white glaze, which is milky and opaque, with clearly visible bubbles and pinholes on the surface. The glaze extends to the foot, thinning at the rim and the edges of the flanges, where it appears yellowish-brown.
The official kilns of the Southern Song Dynasty inherited the style of the Northern Song Dynasty, continuing its orthodoxy and achieving an elegant and refined aesthetic. They largely followed the forms of bronze and ancient jade, both important ritual vessels used in ancient ceremonies. Scholars and literati especially treasured these pieces, meticulously studying and seeking their essence, evoking a dreamlike return to the Shang and Zhou dynasties, witnessing the enduring glory of a thousand years ago. 2
Zun Vessel With Light Bluish-Green Glaze, Guan Ware 南宋官窯青瓷尊
[Right] Porcelain | Southern Song dynasty (12th-13th century) | H: 25.9 cm, D (mouth): 16.5 cm, D (base): 13.0 cm | Collection of the National Palace Museum. 瓷器｜南宋（十二至十三世紀）｜高25.9公分 口徑16.5公分 足徑13.0公分｜國立故宮博物院藏 3
The Zun Vessel With Light Bluish-Green Glaze (above right) has four straight clay lines affixed to the exterior wall, running from the mouth, through the belly, and to the foot, raising the surface in three sections, resembling the ridges of a bronze zun with protruding flanges.
Cong Vase With Light Bluish-Green Glaze, Guan Ware 南宋官窯青瓷琮式瓶
Porcelain | Southern Song dynasty (12th-13th century) | H: 18.8 cm, D (mouth): 12.8 cm, D (base): 12.4 cm | Collection of the National Palace Museum. 瓷器｜南宋（十二至十三世紀）｜高18.8公分 口徑12.8公分 底徑12.4公分｜國立故宮博物院藏 4
The National Palace Museum in Taipei now houses five important official kiln pieces: one zun (wine vessel), three hu (wine pots), all made in the same pattern of bronze ware, and one cong (above), its form inspired by ancient jade.
Tsun (Zun) Vase With Moon-White Glaze 鈞窯 月白出戟尊
[Right] Porcelain | Jin-Yuan Dynasties (1115-1368) | H: 26.5 cm, D (mouth): 21.7 cm, D (base): 17.0 cm | Collection of the National Palace Museum. 瓷器｜金-元（公元1115年-1368年）｜高26.5公分 口徑21.7公分 足徑17.0公分｜国立故宫博物院藏 5
Some scholars date these Jun ware to the late Yuan and early Ming dynasties, rather than the Northern Song Dynasty. Another Jun ware in similar pattern is on display in Taipei’s National Palace Museum (above left). The period of production, however, has been determined to be Jin-Yuan Dynasties (1115-1368).
The base is coated with an ochre-coloured protective glaze. The inner, curved glaze of the foot is glossy, with some areas showing blue hues and the number “five” inscribed on it. Official/Numbered Jun ware are only found in a limited and well-defined range of shapes. Designed for the cultivation and exhibition of plants, forms include shallow studded bowls, flowerpots, and vases, often modelled after ancient bronze vessels.
By the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), numbered Jun ware were well collected by the Imperial family and were displayed within the inner sanctum of the Forbidden City. Jun wares for official use’ are mainly zun-shaped beakers with vertical flanges, flowerpots, and flowerpot salvers. The bottom of the artefacts is often inscribed with Chinese numbers ranging from “一” (one) to “十” (ten), indicating that each set has 10 models. Research has found that the larger the number, the smaller the size of the artefact.
Polychrome Ceramics of the Jun Kilns
Northern Song to Jin Dynasty ( c. 960-1234), The Palace Museum
Located near Juntai and Baguadong in present-day Yuzhou City, Henan Province, the Jun kilns were also known as the Juntai or Bagu adong kilns. Jun ware was famous all over the country for its azure glaze, pale blue glaze, copper-red speckles in azure glaze, and transmutation glaze.6
‘Jun wares for daily use’ chiefly include plates, bowls, cups, saucers, brush washers, vases, and jars, and are generally coated with either a pure azure glaze or an azure glaze with grey-purple speckles.7
All photos taken at The Palace Museum (Beijing) Nov 2025, National Palace Museum (Taipei) Aug 2023, unless otherwise noted.
About Chinese Treasure Series
中華國寶系列 Chinese Treasure series feature specific artefacts and relics from museums all around the world that are historically significant to be considered a National Treasure. The series covers the 5,000 years of Chinese civilisation from Neolithic periods before the Xia dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BC) to modern day.
Footnotes :
- 【钧窑月白釉出戟尊】
故00145451
钧窑月白釉出戟尊，宋，高32.6厘米，口径26厘米，足径21厘米。
涂酱色釉，刻划数目字“三”。 此尊风格古朴、庄重，为宋代宫廷使用的典型陈设用瓷。
传世钧窑器物的底部多刻有“一”到“十”不同的数目字，其意义历来有不同的解释。据现存实物证明，器底所刻数字越小，器形越大。
传世钧窑陈设用瓷器中，以各式花盆和花盆托最为多见，出戟尊则较少。目前全世界所见仅约10件左右，除此件以外，还有上海博物馆收藏的钧窑月白釉出戟尊、台北故宫博物院收藏的钧窑丁香紫釉出戟尊等。 ↩︎ - 南宋官窰，承北宋遺風，延其正統，致雅脫俗，多襲青銅、古玉之制，此二者皆為古禮祭祀重器，文人雅士尤以為珍，精考而敏求，夢回商周，再見千年輝煌依舊。今台北故宮所藏，見五件官窰重器，一尊、三壺，皆為青銅之制，亦見一琮，取源古玉之形。見《宋官窰特展》，台北，1989年，編號2及8-10；及《千禧年宋代文物大展》，台北，2000年，編號I-31。https://www.sothebys.com/zh/auctions/ecatalogue/2015/guan-from-a-japanese-collection-hk0573/lot.1.html ↩︎
- 官窯 青瓷尊
Zun vassel with light bluish-green glaze, Guan ware
陶瓷器
南宋
高25.9公分 口徑16.5公分 足徑13.0公分
喇叭口、扁圓腹、高足脛外撇至足緣，圈足；其頸、腹及脛係分別製作後接合成，頸與脛部各飾一道弦紋；器外壁貼付四條直行的泥線，自口、經腹、至足，分三段凸起器面，有如出戟銅尊的稜脊。全器施粉青釉，釉層厚而勻，光澤瑩潤，有不規則的大開片，器裡腹部與脛部的釉薄不勻且色灰黯。足緣無釉，呈暗褐色，其傷破處見深黑胎色。全器造形典雅，泥線因罩厚釉而線條柔和，出脊稜緣處則映黑胎色。 ↩︎ - 官窯 青瓷琮式瓶
Cong-shaped vase with light green glaze, Guan ware
陶瓷器
南宋
高18.8公分 口徑12.8公分 底徑12.4公分
仿五節王琮形制，方體圓口，口壁寬如玉壁狀；平底無足，胎骨厚重，底無釉，滿塗赭 色厚汁；粉青厚釉，積釉處略帶淺壁色，薄處映現褐紫胎骨；鱔血色開片密佈。 ↩︎ - 鈞窯 月白出戟尊
Tsun vase with moon-white glaze
陶瓷器
金-元
高26.5公分 口徑21.7公分 足徑17.0公分
造型仿古銅器尊，口沿外敞，喇叭狀長頸接鼓腹，足脛外撇而下，矮圈足。器外頸、腹、足脛各裝飾突出的方稜四道，故稱為「出戟尊」。通體罩施月白色釉，釉質乳濁，釉表氣泡稯眼十分明顯。施釉至足際，口沿及扉棱邊緣釉薄處，皆呈土黃色。底塗赭色護胎汁，足內弧形釉面瑩亮，局部出現藍彩，並刻有數目字「五」。 ↩︎ - 色彩绚烂的钧窑瓷器
钧窑遗址位于今河南省禹州市区古钧台与八卦洞附近，故亦称钧台窑、八卦洞窑。钧窑瓷器素以釉装饰而闻名于世，主要有天蓝釉、月白釉、天蓝釉加紫红斑、窑变釉等。其中，最受称道的是瑰丽的铜红窑变釉。这种釉系在青釉上施铜红釉，因铜红釉中还混杂其他着色金属氧化物，故烧成后釉色变化丰富，色彩绚烂，红、蓝、月白、灰紫等色交相辉映，别具神韵。 ↩︎ - 钓窑瓷器可分为陈设和日用两大类，即所谓“官钧”和“民钧”。“官钧”瓷器的造型主要有出戟尊、花盆、花盆托等，器物外底多刻划汉字数目，从“一”到“十”均有，说明每套有10个型号。研究发现，数字越大，器物尺寸越小。对于“官钧”瓷器的年代，学术界也有人认为不是北宋，而是元代未年至明代初年。“民钧”瓷器造型主要有盘、碗、杯、盏托、洗、瓶、罐等，一般以天蓝釉或天蓝釉紫红斑装饰。 ↩︎
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