This beehive shaped water dropper was one of the items used in a scholar’s study. The fine mouth rim controls tiny amounts of water that are dropped onto the inkstone while the ink is ground. This vessel is covered in peach bloom glaze, or “jiang dou hong (豇豆红)”, which is characterised by a mottled red glaze. An innovation of the Kangxi period, this type of glaze was mostly used on small objects, probably because it suited the scholarly taste for all things refined and simple, or 'dan ya' (雅淡).
