Page 36 - Sotheby's Fine Chinese Art NYC September 2023

粉彩喜上眉梢圖盤(編號546)體現了瓷匠們
為達到御窰昔日成就所作出的努力。相同
紋飾並見於為同治大婚而製的其他瓷器，
器型各異而數量眾多。每件瓷器製作步驟
均頗爲繁複，而且不容出錯。藝匠先刻紋
飾，再繪喜鵲梅花等圖案後入窰烘燒，最後
施黃地，全套工序方成。施黃地時，技藝精
湛的瓷匠小心翼翼，避開複雜紋飾的邊緣，
確保入窰烘燒後釉料不會外滲。這種複雜
的技術稱為填黃，在當地官員上奏慈禧的
報告中有詳細描述。報告稱，雖然這種技
術普遍於早期，但御窰被毀後大致失傳。
清同治珊瑚紅地粉彩開光龍鳳呈祥紋瓷一
組(編號543)包括一組畫有相同紋飾的瓷
器，珊瑚紅地襯托雙喜紋飾，其中一些署「
燕喜同和」款，而燕喜殿及同和殿都是同
治大婚時皇后和貴妃居住之處，而此款亦
帶祈求夫妻婚姻美滿和順之祝願。尺寸較
大的盌和渣斗外壁並裝飾開光龍鳳紋，中
心書「喜」字，署款「長春同慶」，除寓意吉
祥之外，亦可指兩位皇太后在紫禁城長春
宮的居所，故學者認爲此類器出自於皇太
后長春宮舉行的婚宴所用的小組瓷器。同
治大婚慶典瓷器，紋飾寓意吉祥歡欣，清
同治黃地粉彩五福壽紋盤(編號564)兼用
圖案及文字表達吉祥寓意（蝠與福諧音），
屬於典型作例。
68 SOTHEBY’S COMPLETE CATALOGUING AVAILABLE AT SOTHEBYS.COM/N11275
The large ‘magpie and prunus’ dish (lot 546) exemplifies the potters’
efforts to attain the past glory of the imperial kiln. Like other specimens
of the Tongzhi wedding ware, this design was made into different shapes
and large numbers. The making of each of them, however, required
many steps that allowed no room for mistake. The decorative patterns
were incised first; then the magpie and prunus patterns were painted
and baked. The last step was to apply the yellow ground. The skillful
potter carefully avoided the edges of these intricate patterns and made
sure that the glaze did not overflow during baking. This complicated
process was called tianhuang, or filling yellow, and it was described in
detail in the local official’s report to Cixi. The report stated that while this
technique had been common in earlier times, it was largely lost after the
destruction of the imperial kiln.
The large coral-ground famille-rose service (lot 543) includes
porcelains all painted with the same design. Against the coral-color
ground are auspicious double xi (happiness) characters. Some are
inscribed “yanxi tonghe,” a phrase that combines the palace names
for Tongzhi’s empress and consort in the Forbidden City. It can also
be interpreted as a prayer for the couple’s harmonious marriage. The
exterior of the larger bowls and the spittoons also each have a roundel
within which a pair of dragon and phoenix hover around another xi
character. Their inscriptions read “changcun tongqing,” or, “jointly
celebrating the eternal spring.” But since “changcun” can also refer to
the two empress dowagers’ residence in the Changchungong Palace in
the Forbidden City, scholars tie this group of wares to a small number
of porcelains made for a wedding banquet held there. Happiness is
indeed the keyword to the wedding. It appears in many designs of the
Tongzhi wedding ware. A yellow-ground, iron-red and famille-rose dish
(lot 564) decorated with flying bats and shou medallions is a typical
example incorporating textual and pictorial motifs to maximize the
auspiciousness: the pronunciation of bat in Chinese, fu, is the same as
the character for good fortune.