Page 48 - Christie's Important Chinese Works of Art, May 31 to June 1, 2023 Hong Kong

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fig. 1 Collection of the Shanghai Museum fig. 2 From the R.F.A. Riesco Collection,
圖一 上海博物館藏品 sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 27 November 2013, lot 3111
圖二 里埃斯科舊藏，2013年11月27日於香港佳士得拍賣，拍品3111號

The present moonflask belongs to a small group of exquisitely potted 景德鎮御器厰曾於永樂、宣德期間燒製了一批珍貴的青花及白釉葫蘆式
moonflasks made during the Yongle and Xuande reigns made by the 扁瓶，其造型源自伊斯蘭金屬器或玻璃器。此類扁瓶有兩種不同的比例，
Imperial kilns in Jingdezhen. These iconic moonflasks of the early 15th
century were inspired either by Islamic metalwork or glass models, and 一種上下腹比例接近，高度約25公分，造型精緻。此類的青花例子除了本
were made in two distinct proportions, in both plain white and blue 瓶之外，另可參考大英博物館一例，見《Ming Ceramics in the British
and white. Museum》，倫敦，2001年，頁110，圖3：21、上海博物館藏一例，見《青花
釉裏紅》，香港，1987年，圖版52號（圖一）、天民樓珍藏一例，見《天民樓
The first, smaller and rarer, such as the present moonflask, measure about 珍藏青花瓷器》，上海，1996年，圖版31號，及宣德款一例，其為埃斯科舊
25 cm. in height, tend to have a more generous upper bulb in proportion
to the lower, flattened section. For other blue and white examples from 藏，2013年11月27日於香港佳士得拍賣，拍品3111號（圖二）。值得留意的
this group, see an example in the collection of the British Museum, see 是，永樂扁瓶一般置橢圓圈足，宣德例子則多帶長方足。永樂扁瓶向不施
J. Harrison Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, 款，宣德扁瓶則多於口下青花書宣德橫款。
p. 110, no. 3:21, one in the Shanghai Museum, illustrated in Underglaze
Blue and Red, Hong Kong, 1987, pl. 52 (fig. 1), one from the Percival David
Foundation, London, illustrated by Daisy Lion-Goldshmidt, La Porcelaine 另一類上下腹的比例差距較大，上腹圓渾，下腹扁平，高約30公分。如倫
Ming, Fribourg, 1978, pl. 35, one in the S.C. Ko Tianminlou Collection, 敦維多利亞與阿爾伯特博物館所藏一例，見《Far Eastern Ceramics in
illustrated in Blue & white porcelain from the collection of Tianminlou the Victoria and Albert Museum》，倫敦，1980年，圖版145號；土耳
Foundation, Shanghai, 1996, no. 31, and a Xuande-marked example from 其托普卡匹宮藏一例，見《Chinese Ceramics in the Topkapi Saray
The R.F.A. Riesco collection, sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 27 November Museum, Istanbul》，倫敦，1986年，第二冊，圖版616號；近年現身於拍
2013, lot 3111 (fig. 2). It is interesting to note that the Yongle vessels
usually stand on an oval foot, and do not bear a mark, while the Xuande 賣市場三件，見香港蘇富比，2018年10月3日，拍品122號，2020年10月9
examples usually have a rectangular foot with the reign mark written in 日，拍品3608號，及劉鑾雄舊藏一件，香港蘇富比，2022年10月9日，拍品
underglaze blue in a horizontal line below the mouth. 3509號。另可參考景德鎮御窰遺址永樂初期堆積層出土一件該類白釉葫
蘆式扁瓶，見《景德鎮珠山出土永樂宣德官窰瓷器展覽》，香港，1989年，
The other, larger at a height of about 30 cm., tend to have a smaller
upper bulb in proportion to their lower, flattened, section, see J. Ayers, 圖版5號。
Far Eastern Ceramics in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1980,
no. 145; R. Krahl, Chinese Ceramics in the Topkapi Saray Museum, Istanbul, 某些學者認為此類永宣葫蘆式扁瓶，應為出口西方伊斯蘭市場的所製。但這
London, 1986, vol. II, no. 616; and three examples sold at auctions, one 並不完全屬實。明十五世紀上半葉南京皇城遺址永樂 / 宣德堆積層曾出土
from the Sir Quo-Wei Lee collection, sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 紋飾與此相同的青花瓷片，見《朱明遺萃：南京明故宮出土陶瓷》，
3 October 2018, lot 122, another sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 9 October
2020, lot 3608, and one from the Joseph Lau collection, sold at Sotheby’s 香港，1996年，編號52，顯示此類扁瓶亦為宮廷器重。
Hong Kong, 9 October 2022, lot 3509.
It has been suggested by some authors that these flasks, particularly
the blue and white examples with decoration clearly inspired by Islamic
arabesques, were made solely for export to the Islamic West. However,
one crucial piece of evidence suggests that this is not entirely true. A
shard from one of these flasks, bearing the same decoration as the
present vessel was excavated from the Yongle/Xuande stratum at the
site of the early Ming dynasty Imperial Palace in Nanjing, see A Legacy of
the Ming, Hong Kong, 1996, p. 48, no. 52. It is evident that these elegant
flasks were also appreciated by the Chinese court in the first half of the
15 century.
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