Page 111 - A Re-examination of Late Qing Dynasty Porcelain, 1850-1920 THESIS

Many collectors and institutions do not possess porcelain dating to this era. This study

concludes that several factors have contributed to this hole within Chinese porcelain

collections worldwide. The lack of holdings directly correlates to a much smaller number

of vessels being produced during this time period. Additionally, many individuals do not

consider this era’s porcelain of particular interest, because it is widely discredited as poor

imitations of earlier dynastic wares. For these reasons, few examples have been

published, making it challenging to understand the aesthetics, styles, and iconography

that became popular as a result of Yuan’s patronage. This study identifies several

collections that hold numerous examples dating to the Hongxian era and the early

republic. Each example dates accurately to the era with dates confirmed by museum

acquisition years, maintaining a clear provenance. These qualifications enable this study

to examine a variety of vessels that can be attributed to China’s last imperial-level patron.

This chapter investigates an array of collections containing Hongxian-era porcelain,

while the final chapter investigates the strongest documented collection of late dynastic

through early republic porcelain.

Looking specifically at Yuan as a patron, it is evident that as a ruler he attempted

to reconnect to traditional Chinese culture. This connection most likely served as an

attempt to validate his new imperial regime. One way in which he attempted this

legitimization of his reign was to carry on some of the patronage of porcelain that

Empress Dowager Cixi cultivated just a few years earlier. Shortly after taking the title of

emperor, production of porcelain returned to the imperial kilns at Jingdezhen, specifically

the 22 kiln sites that survived the fall of the Qing dynasty. 129 These new imperial wares

129 Zhiyan Li and Wen Cheng, Chinese Pottery and Porcelain: Traditional Chinese Arts and
Culture (Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 1984), 91.
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