Page 114 - Sothebys HK Dragon Emperor April 2024

This piece is a member of an extremely rare group of Ding
110 FOR COMPLETE CATALOGUING 詳盡圖錄內容請瀏覽 SOTHEBYS.COM/HK1526
fit for the 18th century, Yongzheng and Qianlong thoughtfully
vessels carved with ‘dragon’ designs. Forming a harmonious altered, restored and replicated pieces in their collections.
composition across the rare cylindrical form, the exceptional An archaic jade bi from the Eastern Han dynasty (recently
liveliness of the incised decoration is testament to the skill of sold in these rooms, 22nd April 2021, lot 9), for example, was
an accomplished master. As so few ‘dragon’-decorated Ding retrofitted on Qianlong’s orders into a screen of zitan wood
pieces survive and seem to form a fairly consistent group, it and incised with a poem of the emperor’s composition. Many
is likely that they were made during the height of production artefacts, including Ding bowls in the imperial collection, had
at the Ding kilns in Quyang, Hebei province. Celebrated similar treatment with poetry and imperial marks incised on
to this day as one of the Five Famous Wares of the Song their base.
dynasty, the unctuous milky tones of the Ding glaze lend an Far from acts of self-absorbed graffiti, these additions
air of sophistication and elegance to the piece. sought to further elevate the archaic pieces and bring them
Returning to the ancient motifs of dragons and leiwen (key into the modern day. Official records show how Tang Ying,
frets), this piece exemplifies the veneration of archaic styles superintendent of the Imperial Kilns in Jingdezhen, was
found during the Song dynasty. Reaching its height under frequently asked to produce matching covers, replicate or
the reign of Emperor Huizong (r. 1100-1126), the Song court repair existing relics. The added base, likely the result of
turned to the philosophy, culture and artistic traditions of such repairs, renders the vessel as much a piece of Qing
early Imperial China as a paragon of refined ancient beauty. history as it is a treasure of the Song court. While the original
The present motifs of chi dragons and leiwen appear on form and use of this piece has long been lost to history, the
many archaic bronze pieces from the Warring States Period dedication and care of its successive owners have stood the
and many Ding pieces featuring such designs were acquired test of time.
by or presented to the Imperial collections, now preserved in Another method by which such pieces were elevated to
the Palace Museum, Taipei, as well as at least one piece from new heights in the Qing dynasty was through illustration.
the Qing Court collection in the Palace Museum, Beijing. Painstakingly hand-painted in catalogues accompanied
As Hsieh Ming-Liang points out in the Palace Museum’s by imperial seals and descriptions, vessels like this were
Catalogue of the Special Exhibition of Ting Ware White codified and immortalised as the personal treasures of
Porcelain, Taipei, 1987, pp. 15-16, a piece similarly decorated emperors. Painted in 1728 and 1729, the two Guwan tu
with swirling chi dragon and leiwen band (ibid., cat. no. 87) (‘Pictures of Ancient Playthings’), now held in the British
is engraved with the characters Shou Cheng Dian (‘Hall for Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum, respectively,
Achieving Long Life’), and was likely reserved for use in the record around five hundred precious objects from the
Imperial palace of the Northern Song dynasty. Yongzheng emperor’s collection including a number of Ding
No other Ding pieces of this remarkable type are known. A wares. One of four catalogues of illustrations made by the
sheer cut in the glaze at the rim of the original cylindrical Qianlong Emperor held in the Taipei Palace Museum, the
piece suggests it likely formed part of a multi-piece Zhentao cuimei (‘Precious Ceramics of Assembled Beauty’)
construction like that of a related ‘Xing’ bowl from the Sir depicts seven Ding vessels, among them a smaller brush
Percival David Collection at the British Museum (accession washer with stylised chi dragon and similar leiwen design
no. PDF.182). Constructed from three pieces with a bowl around the perimeter (accession no. Gu ci 009307, figs 1-2).
resting above a cavernous cylinder to enable gentle heating, For other Ding wares with dragon designs, compare a closely
brush washers of this type were the treasured possessions related flat-bottomed dish from the Sir Percival David
of Song dynasty scholar-officials. Collection in the British Museum (accession no. PDF.116)
However, these vessels were not just treasured in the Song with similar pair of chi dragons; a magnificent foliate dish
dynasty, rather they were returned to, again and again, from the Hellner collection with almost identical chi dragon in
in later generations as timeless relics of refinement and profile was sold in our New York rooms, 31st March 2005, lot
elegance. The Yongzheng and Qianlong emperors of the 30, for 1,528,000 US dollars; another widely exhibited brush
Qing dynasty were particularly passionate antiquarians and washer of smaller size with chi dragon viewed from above,
amassed enormous collections of archaic and archaistic formerly in the collection of Eugene and Elva Bernat, sold at
vessels including Ding wares. Wishing not just to preserve Christie’s New York, 22nd March 2018, lot 505.
antiques but also to give them new life as scholar’s objects
fig. 1. A Ding incised ‘chilong’ brush washer, Northern Song - Jin dynasty, 14 cm, fig. 2. The corresponding leaf in the album Precious
Qing court collection, Palace Museum, Taipei, accession no. Gu ci 009307 Ceramics of Assembled Beauty, Qing dynasty, Qianlong
period, Qing court collection, Palace Museum, Taipei,
圖一 北宋至金 定窰白瓷劃花盤龍紋洗 14厘米 清宮舊藏 台北故宮博物院 accession no. Gu hua 003651
藏品編號：故瓷009307
圖二 清乾隆 《珍陶萃美》之六 宋定窰蟠龍洗 清宮
舊藏 台北故宮博物院 藏品編號：故畫003651
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