Page 164 - Bonhams Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Nov 2014 Hong Kong

188 The cavetto of the wucai bowl is further decorated with the rare
A rare wucai ‘Immortals’ bowl motif of Daoist Immortals. Such decorative element was originally
Wanli six-character mark and of the period inspired by the Jiajing emperor’s fascination with Daoism as a means
With shallow curved sides rising to a slightly everted rim from a short to longevity. The dragon fish motif as depicted towards the interior
circular foot, painted in blue and enamelled on the exterior with three within double circles is extremely rare. The carp or liyu transforming
immortals standing near a cave entrance amidst a lush landscape into a dragon long is associated with the passing of civil service
scene, the interior featuring a central medallion of a scrolling dragon- examinations, hence forming the pun yutiao longmen. According to
fish, yulong, in flight amidst lightning clouds, the base with a six- traditional folklore, carp swim upstream in the Yellow River at Hunan
character kaishu mark. towards the Dragon Gate waterfall at Longmen. It is said that the first
11.2cm (4 3/8in) diam. carp which successfully surpasses the rapids will transform into a
HK$1,200,000 - 1,800,000 dragon fish yulong. Such legend has led to the common saying that,
US$150,000 - 230,000 ‘a student facing his examinations is like a carp attempting to leap
明萬曆 五彩翼龍八仙人物圖盌 青花「大明萬曆年製」楷書款 the Dragon Gate’, which bears the metaphor for a poor scholar who
passes the civil service examinations and becomes a high official.
162 | Bonhams
Compare a similar shaped but smaller (9.6cm diam.) Wanli wucai
bowls featuring instead a centralised dragon medallion and with
figures carrying offerings in the Qing Court Collection, illustrated
in Porcelain in Polychrome and Contrasting Colour. The Complete
Treasures of the Palace Museum, Shanghai, 1999, p.56, no.52.

盌撇口，弧壁，圈足。盌心繪一條翼龍飛舞雲間，外壁口沿處繪如意
花卉紋一周為邊飾，繪三人，收持葫蘆或靈芝，周圍襯以草木山石，
山石後隱現庭苑大門。底書青花雙圈「大明萬曆年製」六字雙行楷
書款。

萬曆五彩瓷裝飾題材廣泛，除花卉動物外，亦有道教題材和山水風
景。清宮舊藏中有件相似的例子可資比較，見《故宮博物院藏文物珍
品大系：五彩，鬥彩》，上海，1999年，頁56，圖52。