W:9.7cmA Rare Blue and White Lions Censer, Tianshunof stoutly potted cylindrical form, the sides decorated in dark underglaze blue beneath the bluish finely crackled glaze, with four Buddhist lions, playing and prancing among scattered emblems, between double line borders above and below and a further keyfret band at the rim, the circular footrim unglazed and burnt russet in the firingThe straight sides superbly painted in vivid underglaze blue with four lions playfully chasing beribboned brocade balls, the mythical felines detailed with long-haired manes, bushy tails and powerful limbs. The current incense burner is one of a rare group of blue and white porcelains from the Tianshun (1457-64) reign, freely and vividly painted to depict lions, a rare and introduced specie animal for Chinese symbolizing imperial power and authority. The motif and its bold painterly style of the present bowl, closely following that of the Xuande reign, also support an early Chenghua date, playing the role as the connecting link. The motif of lions playing with beribboned balls is well known from early 15th century porcelain, such as a jar with Xuande mark and of the period in the Shanghai Museum, Shanghai, illustrated in Lu Minghua, Mingdai guanyao ciqi [Ming imperial porcelain], Shanghai, 2007, pl. 1-32. A similar motif of Buddhist lions is also known on a Chenghua mark and period dish, included in the exhibition The Emperor's Broken china, Sotheby's London, 1995, cat. no. 93, together with a reconstructed ewer also painted with lions, cat. no. 48. It carries auspicious associations symbolising physical and spiritual power and conveying wishes for high rank.