A rare Chinese Longquan celadon-glazed moulded 'Tale of the Pipa' bowl, Hongwu, heavily potted, decorated with a keyfret border to the exterior rim and scenes from the Ming Dynasty drama with captions to the interior, covered overall in a thick, olive-green glaze, the unglazed base burnt orange. 17.7cm diam.Provenance: Bonhams, London, Fine Chinese art, 9 November 2017, lot 70.Francesco Maria, Marchese Taliani de Marchio (1887 - 1968), Grand Officer of the Italian Crown, Commander of the Order of St Maurice and Lazarus, and Commander of the Order of Pius IX (Ordine Piano), and his wife Archduchess Maragaretha d'Austria Toscana, Marchesa Taliani de Marchio (1894 – 1986).Acquired from K. D. Lu, Shanghai, 13 June 1941.The Tale of the Pipa (琵琶記) is a late Yuan dynasty play by Gao Ming 高明 (circa 1305–1370). It was the most popular drama of the Ming period and was highly appreciated by the Hongwu emperor, who had it performed at Court regularly.Compare with two bowls of the same type, with impressed figural designs and captions, but of a different pattern, in the collection of the British Museum, London, illustrated by J. Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, pls.16:52 and 16:53.明洪武 龍泉青釉琵琶記圖盌來源：購於倫敦邦瀚斯，邦德街，2017，拍品號70；佛朗西斯高•瑪利亞，塔里安利•得•馬基奧侯爵（1887-1968）及馬加烈特•奧地利-托斯卡納女大公，塔里安利•得•馬基奧女侯爵（1894-1986）伉儷收藏；於1941年6月13日購自上海古董商鼎盛齋古玩號General expected surface wear and firing imperfections consistent with age and type. Some shallow flakes to the centre of the base revealing the white body underneath the orange base.