Created under the supervision of Tang Ying, the imperial porcelain director during the Qianlong reign of the Qing Dynasty, this exquisite vase was exclusively crafted for the imperial court and remains extremely rare. The Revolving Vase features openwork panels (kaiguang) on both sides of its belly, enclosing a small, freely rotating inner vase—hence its alternate name, “Pierced Revolving Vase.” The inner vase rotates by means of a pivot mechanism: a “chicken-heart” knob (jixin niu) on the base of the outer vase fits into a corresponding groove (jixin cao) on the inner vase’s base, enabling smooth movement.
