Page 17 - Sotheby's October 3 2017 Chinese Art

Painted with a bold design of a dragon and 此梅瓶繪龍鳳呈祥，穿梭纏枝牡丹之間，紋
phoenix amongst a dense scroll of blooming 樣布局妙似十四世紀青花所飾。龍首與華
peonies, the motif on this piece is reminiscent 葩，雙雙呼應，其身軀弧曲，又與蔓枝延莖
of designs on fourteenth century blue and 共鳴，尤為悅目。相類梅瓶，可參見 John
white porcelain, as evident in the rendering of Buchanan-Jardine 爵士所藏，曾展於《國
the serrated leaves and the large proportions 際中國藝術展》，倫敦皇家美術學院，1935
of the animals and the flowers. The craftsman 年，編號2177。香港蘇富比曾售一例，1979
has created a harmonious sense of luxury and 年11月24日，編號266。倫敦佳士得也售一
dynamism through the carefully composed 例，見1976年4月5日，編號96。尺寸較小之
design by echoing the form of the head of the 瓶，則可參考曾售於香港蘇富比1995年10月
dragon in the blooms and its sinuous body in 31日之例，編號512，或1996年12月17日於
the branches. A closely related vase, from the 倫敦蘇富比拍出者，編號153。倫敦蘇富比且
collection of Sir John Buchanan-Jardine, was 售一瓶，卻較此品為高，2006年7月12日，編
included in The International Exhibition of Chinese 號128。清宮故藏有一瓶例，瓶肩略寬，足部
Art, Royal Academy of Arts, London, 1935, cat. 環飾蓮瓣紋，現蓄北京故宮博物院，錄於《故
no. 2177; another was sold in these rooms, 24th 宮博物院藏文物珍品全集：五彩．鬪彩》，香
November 1979, lot 266; and a third was sold at 港，1999年，圖版237。
Christie’s London, 5th April 1976, lot 96. Compare
also a slightly smaller example sold in these 元朝執壺，有繪飾穿花鳳紋者，參考朱裕平，
rooms, 31st October 1995, lot 512; another sold in 《元代青花瓷》，上海，2000年，圖版22。
our London rooms, 17th December 1996, lot 153;
and a much larger one sold in our London rooms,
12th July 2006, lot 128.

Doucai meiping painted with dragon and
phoenix are also known with a lappet border
near the foot, such as one from the Qing court
collection, preserved in the Palace Museum,
Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of
Treasures in the Palace Museum. Porcelains in
Polychrome and Contrasting Colours, Hong Kong,
1999, pl. 237; one from the Hirota collection in
the Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo, illustrated in
Hirota Collection, Tokyo, 1973, pl. 274; and a third
sold in our London rooms, 5th December 1995,
lot 323.

Compare the design of the present vase with
a Yuan dynasty ewer similarly rendered with a
phoenix among flowers, illustrated in Zhu Yuping,
Yuandai qinghua ci [Yuan blue and white wares],
Shanghai, 2000, pl. 22.

IMPORTANT CHINESE ART 15