Hi,
Thanks for reviving this thread. Sadly I never seemed to get any response on The Asian Art Forum, but then that's not entirely surprising as it does appear to be quite an unusual piece.
There are no marks on the item, however I am in no doubt whatsoever that it is Chinese. Likewise I know it isn't new. It photographs well, however there is fine random wear to the glaze, and the unglazed interior and feet show a great deal of discolouration from dirt and use over the years. One of the feet has also been off and re-stuck at some point in the past. If you look at the interior shot that I posted on the Flickr set, you can see some of the discolouration. The cleaner areas of the feet show that the clay is actually a fairly light, almost buff colour, however the interior is blackened from use and dirt (these photos were taken after a thorough clean and the removal of much accumulated grime).
I believe the absolute latest it is likely to be is Republic era, though I suspect it is older than that. I have made contact with a collector in the Wenzhou area and hope to get his opinion on the piece the next time I am back there.
The piece is in a type of earthenware rather than porcelain - sadly most of my reference books only cover porcelain, which is another reason why I have found it hard to research. It's also been hand built rather than thrown. Hand built earthenware vessels have been made at the Shiwan kilns for centuries, and flambe glazes were certainly used there, so that looks like a promising area. Likewise Yixing may also be a possibility. Until recently I'd only associated Yixing with red or purple clay teapots, however glazed jun-style wares were also produced. At present I think Shiwan is most likely, however.
