A good 'wucai' jar with dragon medallions, wooden cover with excellent jade handle in the shape of a Buddha hand citron

Description:

China, Wanli six-character mark, 18th/19th cent.
D. 20/ H. 25 cm mit Deckel
Around the body four medallions with five-clawed dragons 'en face' framed by large flowers and foliage. Underglaze blue six-character mark Wanli in double ring on the base. The carved wooden lid with excellently crafted handle of a finger citron made of light green jade from the 18th century.
In the family for over 100 years, acquired by Dr Adam Breuer (1868 - 1944) in London, where he worked as an ophthalmologist and eye surgeon, for his collection around 1900. To thank him for regaining his sight, a patient gave him a Ming vase and this sparked his passion for collecting. At the beginning of the First World War, the collection was taken from London to Berlin, disguised as medical equipment. In 1929, almost the entire collection was offered for auction at Cassirer, but many of the items were lost due to the poor economic situation. In 1945, the collection was packed in boxes, buried deep in the garden and large trees were planted on top. When the Russian soldiers searched the garden with long iron rods, they found nothing. After the war, the collection üwas temporarily stored in the depot of the East Asian Museum in Köln. By inheritance, the collection came to the son Dr Richard Breuer (1912 - 2006), who, as a lawyer and sinologist in the diplomatic service, was considered an expert on East Asia and expanded the collection at his posts in Tokyo and Hong Kong. Dr Adam Breuer was also the founder of the art magazine "Die Weltkunst", which was owned by the Breuer family for 60 years and managed by Carlos A. Breuer - Minim. Signs of age, very minor wear