Page 32 - Bonhams, Fine Chinese Art, London November 3, 2022

Fig.2.1 A large blue and white reserve-decorated ‘peony’ dish,
Xuande mark and period; image courtesy of the Palace Museum, Beijing

Fig.3.1 A blue and white reserve-decorated ‘floral’ dish, Xuande mark and
period; image courtesy of the Palace Museum, Beijing

The second group of the white-on-blue consists of a large dish
acquired in 1956 decorated with peony sprays and fruit and floral
motifs reserved on a blue ground (figs.2-1, 2-2, 2-3, 2-4). It is 7.7cm
high, with a rim diameter of 38.2cm, and a foot diameter of 27.7cm.
Fig.2.2 A large blue and white reserve-decorated ‘peony’ dish,
Xuande mark and period; image courtesy of the Palace Museum, Beijing The dish features a flared mouth rim, curved sides, and a ring foot.
The base is unglazed but with some orange-yellowish tinges.
A peony spray is reserved in white on a blue ground in the centre,
encircled by six groups of auspicious fruits on the cavetto, and the
reverse further decorated with floral scrolls. All white designs are
reserved on a vibrant cobalt-blue ground and further incised with
details. It is marked with a horizontal six-character Xuande reign mark
at the rim, which is also reserved in white. This magnificent dish is
well-potted in a neat form. The blue glaze is rich and lustrous, while
the floral and fruit motifs preserved in white are simple yet vivid,
adding a remarkable decorative touch to the dish.

Dishes of this type are relatively rare. In addition to the one in the
collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, there is so far only one
known to exist in the collection of the Museum of Oriental Ceramics,
Osaka, Japan, and another in a French private collection. The
present lot offered by Bonhams is also a closely related example.
Fig.2.3 A large blue and white reserve-decorated ‘peony’ dish, There may have been, however, more similar ones in the former Qing
Xuande mark and period; image courtesy of the Palace Museum, Beijing
Imperial collection, as the Archives noted in the ‘Lacquer’ section:
‘On the 18th day of the third month, Samha, a chief eunuch at rank 7,
reported that eunuch Maotuan handed over…one large Xuande dish
with white designs reversed on a blue ground, a wucai covered jar
with a tian 天 (heaven) mark on the base…, and delivered the Imperial
decree to match these items with stands before presenting them to
the emperor. End of the decree. On the 17th day of the fourth month
of the same year, Samha matched the above-mentioned Xuande
dish with a zitan stand and…presented it to the emperor. End of the
record.’

Fig.2.4 A large blue and white reserve-decorated ‘peony’ dish,
Xuande mark and period; image courtesy of the Palace Museum, Beijing
30 | BONHAMS