Page 77 - Sotheby's London Important Chinese Art Nov. 2019

This remarkably large vase belongs to a special group of
imperial porcelains made during the Daoguang reign to
furnish the emperor’s newly built ‘Hall of Prudent Virtue’
(Shende Tang). Vessels of such imposing dimensions
testify to the technological prowess of the potters active
at the imperial kilns in Jingdezhen and showcase the
opulence preferred at the imperial court.
Part of the Jiuzhouqingyan complex in the Yuanming Yuan,
the Shende Tang was completed in 1831 and became the
Emperor’s preferred residence until his death there in
1850. Featuring three connecting wave roofs on a square-
shaped structure, the hall was markedly different from
the more characteristic Confucian-inspired architecture, a
feature that was reflected in the style of porcelain that was
produced for it. Porcelains bearing Shende Tang marks
such as this vase, are often decorated in brilliant coloured
enamels against rich colour grounds, a style pioneered
by the Qianlong emperor (r. 1736-1795) and inspired by
paintings mounted on silk. Stacey Pierson notes that no
less than 30 types of imperial Shende Tang porcelains
are extant in public and private collections, mostly in the
shape of bowls, dishes and vases, see Stacey Pierson,
Rare Marks on Chinese Ceramics, London, 1998, p. 36.
This vase is painted with the ‘Three Rams (san yang)’
design that represents a change of fortune with the arrival
of Spring and the New Year and is thus closely associated
with New Year celebrations. The three rams are often
shown together with the rising sun (taiyang) to form the
rebus for ‘three ram (yang) bring prosperity’. The Book
of Changes (Yijing) first mentions the phrase san yang
referring to the three male lines, called tai – the symbol of
heaven. Tai is positioned under three female lines called
kun that represent earth. Hence the phrase ‘sanyang kaitai’
which means the New Year brings renewal and a change
in fortune.
Vases of such large dimensions and painted with this motif
are rare, and no other closely related example appears
to have been published. Compare a slightly smaller vase
painted with this motif also inscribed with a Shende Tang
mark, but with a more globular body, sold in our New York
rooms, 4th December 1985, lot 283; and a much smaller
vase with a Daoguang mark and of the period, sold in our
Hong Kong rooms, 11th April 2008, lot 3025.

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