A Chinese blue and white 'Cranes' flowerpot, Jiajing mark an...

Hammer

€40,000

A Chinese blue and white 'Cranes' flowerpot, Jiajing mark and of the period

Dia.: 17,1 cm - H.: 13,6 cm

Provenance:
- Sotheby and Co. London, 2 March 1971, lot 164.
- S. Marchant and Son, London, with their label to the base.
- The Mr. and Mrs. Baert-Devos Collection, Belgium. Acquired from the above on 8 October 2004 and accompanied by a copy of their original invoice. (see added scans)

Exhibited and published:
- S. Marchant and Son, London, included in their June 1998 exhibition of 'Two Hundred Years' and published in the accompanying catalogue, p. 19, no. 8.
- S. Marchant and Son, London, included in their November 2004 exhibition of 'Ming Blue and White: Jiajing - Chongzhen Including Datex Examples' and published in the accompanying catalogue, pp. 2-3, no. 2.

Sturdily potted of octofoil-lobed form, the gently fluted body painted in rich underglaze cobalt blue with eight vertical panels. Two panels depict the character shou (longevity) above a crane, surrounded by flaming ruyi-heads. The remaining six panels each feature two cranes in different poses, surrounded by flaming ruyi-heads. The everted petal-shaped rim is encircled by eight stylised ruyi-head motifs. The base is pierced with an original central drainage hole and bears a six-character Jiajing reign mark, arranged in two columns on either side of the aperture.
The decorative programme reflects the Daoist interests of the Jiajing Emperor, whose reign witnessed the widespread use of auspicious imagery associated with longevity and immortality. Cranes, regarded as companions and mounts of immortals, are combined with ruyi motifs and the character shou, creating a visual rebus expressing wishes for longevity, the fulfilment of wishes, and enduring good fortune. The elegant fluted form and unusual placement of the reign mark around the drainage hole are characteristic features of imperial flowerpots produced for palace horticultural displays during the Jiajing period.

Reference:
Identical examples were sold by Sotheby's London, 6 July 1976, 'Catalogue of Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art', lot 157 and Christie's Hong Kong, 29 April 2008. A related 'Dragon' jardinière with identical mark in the Qing Court Collection, see 'Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red (II), The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum', p. 122, no. 112. Another 'Dragon' jardinière was sold with Sotheby Parke Bernet, 'The Edward T. Chow Collection, Part One: Ming and Qing Porcelain', Hong Kong, 25 November 1980, lot 16. Another wucai 'Dragon' jardinière was included in the 1936 Tokyo National Museum exhibition of 'Chinese Arts of the Ming and Ch'ing Periods', no. 335.

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