Page 18 - Nov 2019 Christie's Hong Kong a Falancai Imperial Bowl.
P. 18

Their stems are hollow [humble] on the inside and straight, without tendrils   ទǯ᫉⽔ङ੦⎏ཌ㎜ԛᤶℳԠ㷆卿ה⩢ս⡚ಋԋ⎋
              or branches.                                                 ⯺ᚏᚈ㊡ԠࡲԠ卿ݯԋԮᓽߪԻᇙⱹᜀ⯎卿ൈǸސ
              At a distance their fragrance is all the purer,
                                                                           ᝳ⚄ᄹ卿೽ༀ༠Ջǹ卿սࣿǸஶల֛ᩒ卿⯅ᝢᮆ
              Standing erect, they may be admired from afar, but should not be profaned by
              touch.                                                       Ջǯⱍ⸊ං⎉卿㫓Ᵽ⳴Ջǹ✙⸥ᮆ㰍ݏ卿ݯⲖ㍖ទ
              I regard the chrysanthemum as the recluse of flowers.;        जࣻ㊄㫶ݐ ሲ卻%BWJE )BXLFT卼 ⶬ הǴThe Songs
              The peony as the flower of riches and honours;                of Ch’uǵ卿 ᘘ 㢙 ᙻ $ZSJM #JSDI Ꮢ ⤔Ƕ"OUIPMPHZ PG
              But the lotus is the gentleman of flowers.
                                                                           $IJOFTF -JUFSBUVSFǷ㮰   卻⡥⡙厍    卼ǯ
              Alas, few since Tao [Yuanming] have loved the chrysanthemum;
              Who else can match my love of the lotus?
                                                                           ऒᇁի׹卿㵶՞㙐೥ཌ⸥ⱤὍӶᓱᔆᝳ࠼卿৿ջⶬ
              As for peonies, they are always popular.’
                                                                           ल㉼՞⎊཰ᚿ卻ݩ݉     ⯍     ჺ卼Քᝪ٨Ƕᮆӳ
           Zhou Dunyi makes clear his admiration for the modesty and purity of the
                                                                           ❩Ƿᓼ㘚ݯǸⳞలǹ߿⎏᳖ᮆ⧻ᜀǯ㉼ԋᑨ߅Ǹ⡻
           lotus compared to other flowers and likens it to the Confucian ideal of a
                                                                           ⵘ⎊⸥ǹ✙Ǹ⎐य़Ꮢൃ卿⏌ஙय़߿ǹ卿ݳݰǸᛞ㱀
           ‘gentleman’.  However, the lure of lotus is celebrated in even earlier Chinese
           literature, including a shamanistic chant, the Zhao Hun ᑋ  㷆   (Summoning   Ӭៀ卿ᎵूӬ❩ǹԠᦼǯᲔ՘㵶ஶ卿␓߿᭢᯳ẗễǮ
           of the Soul), included in the Chu Ci ( ᤶ  㗧  Songs of Chu), named for   ক㰍⨶⨶卿㈬⏖ⵘ⸥ᔵᝣǮ⳴㲞ᄂᄂ卿᫉ԛ㉼՞ࢨ
           works attributed to Qu Yuan and Song Yu of the Warring States period
                                                                           ऒूਔ⎏㯪ឬԠӬǯ㵶೥㕇⽔՘झ᭢᥻卿ᓛ㕇⡿ঀ
                                          nd
           and anthologised by Wang Yi in the 2  century AD.  The shamans’ chant is
           intended to persuade the soul of the king to return to his body and amongst   Ӭ⥓⳴㲞Ԡ೽ᜀ卿Քᛓत⚁㇦ጪ⎏⥾⊺Ԗ㯪ǯ໦ٛ
           the earthly delights with which they tempt him are gardens.  The description   १→⎏Ӷۣᛓ೽ᚚካ⯎卿ᝤ㪰्Իॶᘹ㯎ս⸥઀ा
           of the gardens includes pavilions and galleries that are cool in summer,
                                                                           ຽԠᇪ⎏ܥ།ካᗁǯ
           overlooking a winding pool in which the lotus blossoms have just opened
           (David Hawkes trans., ‘The Songs of Ch’u’, in Cyril Birch ed., Anthology of
                                                                           ᡜᗌԋஇ۔⢴ᙔࢇ卿⸥⎏༡ዪὍᬘ◘▼ǯ໦⯝דᘰ
           Chinese Literature, New York, 1965, p. 76).
                                                                           ቱቱ⏟㨸卿ԛ⧻㿃⯝⡩ᷛԠࢇ㕇卿ݯⱤ⯝⶟Ք჎٨
           Lotuses have been admired by many Chinese literati over the centuries,   ᑨক㋞ǯ⸥⎏ल♑␕അ卿ഌ㛑֍༕༡ԻǸ᚝⊂㏟
           and in his poem On the Pond ᮆӳ❩ the revered Tang poet Bai Juyi ( ⎊཰
                                                                           ຽǹǮǸ㙄⊂㏟ຽǹ✙ឆ⏣ǯ⸥Ɽ⣭ᘞԠ㪡卿⸥Ꮡ
           ᚿ AD 772–846) described the pool in front of his famous ‘grass hut’ Ⳟల .
                                                                           ᥉ႡᎰᆨ卿㘺Ӭ⁞᫢⎏→㎜፽ᛓ⸥㎜ᇨǸ᚝⊂㏟
           He noted the white lotus and the purple water chestnuts, and expressed the
           pleasure he felt in the whole scene, while drinking wine or declaiming verse.   ຽǹ⎏ࣥ୬ԠӬǯऒջ⥾⊺≾Ꮅᄮᾭ⇈⇶ᆭ≢ԋ⎏
           The enjoyment to be found seated in a cool pavilion, watching the waves on   ⸥⡠卿ݯᆨ㎜Ὅ㋏ᛓ्ⲄǮ⏇ᘞǮ⢙⟴Ꮅ⳴⶟⯦࣍卿
           a pond, seeing the aquatic plants gentle waving in the breeze, and breathing
                                                                           كᥑ⏌⥾㱈Ԡ⬒Կǯ⊐ᙻ⸥⎏ⲄǮⱤǮ⟴༰ऱᛞໄ
           in the delicate scent of lotuses became a popular theme amongst Chinese
                                                                           ங卿֎ד㵲→Ի㙞ࣸǮ→ங⯝ត׹㘺Ӳٖ഍஠ⶃ⁒
           poets.  There are also many paintings depicting a scholar in summer, seated
           in a waterside pavilion, leaning out over the water to enjoy the fragrance of   ᇷ⣌⎏㪖ᬀǯទᐽ৅⎏⳴⶟㚒ᯒᇤᇤᯬ㿩卿⶟⬛⦤
           the lotuses.  This was not only a representation of the pleasures of summer,
                                                                           ᬩ⊳→卿㯸ַ⎏⊺႙Ք㇦㋭ᙻ      ჺἃᄮᾭݪࢦ
           but again a reference to the Confucian idea that the lotus represented the
                                                                           ೰㗪῟㙁⎏Ⅷ⧎⟾ᆭ▴೰⏎卻ވ˔卼卿ݯԋӬ׾ἃ
           ‘gentleman’ or ‘superior man’ – the junzi ाຽ of Zhou Dunyi’s poem.
                                                                           ഌヵᇪ
೥Ⅷ⻦卿எ㇦⼖⅌⇷ᏒⶬǶᆨ★ⰰ㿃୨ջ
           In traditional Chinese culture the lotus has many auspicious meanings. It is
                                                                           ⅧǷ㮰     ⤔⽚    卻ٳᘹ厍    卼ǯ㦶ᙻ⸥Ɽ㘻
           associated with Buddhism, is symbolic of beauty and purity, and both the
                                                                           㵲ᛓ༾卿Ꮢսݯ⯞ㄆ᥼៮⎐ἃू㊫Ԡ㯪ឬǯ࣊؝༠
           lotus flower and the lotus leaf provide a pun for harmony.  The various names
           for the lotus also provide rebuses auguring the imminent and continual   ސ׹⯅卿᭢㬷ۣ㱛៮៨ᘮ⶟卿⸥،὞ἃ㴡՞ಳ໾Ꮢ
           arrival of illustrious sons.  An unusual feature of the lotus is that the seedpod   ੧卿୬ݯ᭢㬷⎏ٜᆴ቗ൈᝧ།✖Ӵ⎏෧⡙⋓ₗǯ
           is already visible when the flower begins to open, and this too is believed
           to suggest the early birth of sons. When depicted in classical paintings, or   ᳖ջႽℳ⎏ዴ⸥Ԡᇵ卿Ӷۣ㵲→ங༈ᅡᇙㅳ⻱ワ
           indeed on Kangxi enamelled wares, all parts of the lotus are celebrated – the
                                                                           ৅卿ᝤᆳ㰆ᙻձٛங༈ݤᅓ᣿⸥Ɽ⎏ῂሔǯᄮᾭԠ
           flower buds, the flowers and their seed pods, and the leaves. The fact that the
           lotus displays buds, flowers and seed pods at the same time is felt to represent   ໑Գ㪏卻ݩ݉      ⯍      ჺஙׅ卼ᝳ㉵⸥㉼അ㲛卿
           the three stages of existence – past, present, and future. Even the delicate   ԆᙇᄟᓽߪᵐᯛǮᴨᯛᎵᵐᮆԋ⎏⸥ⱤǯᗌǶ᳖㵶
           bronzing and tracery of the leaf edges as they age is carefully depicted on
                                                                           ໵ᇙㅳ㉼ߝ㫀Ƿ࣍୨ࢦ   ᴨᯛᙲ⳴   Ӭ㉼Ꮢ㘚卿ᵐ
           both the current Kangxi yuzhi bowl, and on the finest Kangxi famille verte
                                                                           ᮆᎵᵐᯛ㰆὞ᝳࡂᓽ߿⸥ԠⱤឆǯ᫉㉼❥㢙ൈӴ厍
                                           th
           ‘birthday’ plates (fig. 3), made for the 60  birthday of the Kangxi Emperor in
           1716, such as the example in the collection of Sir Percival David (illustrated
           by Rosemary Scott in Elegant Form and Harmonious Decoration – Four   ߣ᱒⊏⊏Ꮭ㇦⶟卿ᵐᮆổổႡ㧷⳴ǯ
           Dynasties of Jingdezhen Porcelain, London, 1992, p. 115, no. 124).  As all parts of   ༠ᜐ㊲ռ᫢Ꮢ㉂卿㙻㙀୬Ԡ⊿ᄃഅǯ


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