Antique Chinese Ceramic Martaban Jar Bean Pot

This is one of our most beloved pieces for sale, the texture and uneven coloring suggestive of another time.
 
Martaban jars were common unrefined stoneware storage pots, sometimes called bean pots, that were exported from China in the 17th and 18th centuries through a port of the same name in what is today Myanmar but was then governed by Siam. The wide body and narrow opening atop allowed for freshness to be maintained on long journeys.
 
An expert described it as having ‘nonfunctional lugs’, referring to the decorative ‘handles’ near the neck of the jar. It is flat on top for stacking in the kiln. You can see scars where it ‘kissed its cousin’ in the kiln and a circle on the bottom where it sat atop another. 
 
Most comparables online were auction house lots, prices ranging from $ 655 to $ 10,480! The average of those priced under $ 1,000 was $ 810.
 
We do believe this was purchased by our eccentric spinster grand aunts on a tour of the Orient in the 1920s or 1930s. It was later passed onto our grandparents who referred to it as the 'Chinese jar on the stairwell'. It was one of the few items specifically requested by our mother as something she wanted to inherit from them. She used it to store antique fireplace instruments until a visitor spotted it. A ceramic collector, he insisted it was too valuable to be left out where it could be damaged. It’s lived a lonely life in storage since. We do hope to find someone to give it life in their home!  
 
Material: Stoneware with chocolate glaze.
H 13 1/2" x L 11 1/2" x D 11 1/2"
9.6 lbs
 
Read more about Martaban jugs here: https://gotheborg.com/glossary/martaban.shtml
 
 
Disclaimer: We have tried to make sure colors shown in photos are representative of the real colors of each item. We have tried to identify all imperfections in descriptions, but we may have missed some. If you are unhappy with your purchase, let us know.