Page 20 - important chinese art mar 22 2018

This pair of cups is an outstanding example of Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, vol. 4,
the high level of skill of porcelain artists working pt. II, London, 2010, pl. 1740, sold in our Hong
at Jingdezhen in the Kangxi period. Despite the Kong rooms, 4th April 2012, lot 51; and a bowl
small surface of the cups, the craftsman has rendered with a scene from the 14th century
successfully captured the drama of the scenes, drama Han gong qiu (Autumn of the Han Palace)
which are taken from woodblock print illustrations composed by Ma Zhiyuan (1250-1321), from the
and rendered in a famille-verte palette. A sense of collection of Allen J. Mercher, sold in our Hong
dynamism is captured through the use of outlines Kong rooms, 6th April 2016, lot 3008.
which have been drawn in swift yet " ne strokes,
and attention is cleverly drawn to the central With its narrow foot and tall ! ared sides, cups of
scene by rendering the " gures in iron red. this form were " rst created in the Jiajing reign
(1522-1566) and produced in a small number
The cups depict a scene from the play Xixiangji
during the Kangxi period with various designs;
(Romance of the Western Chamber) compiled by
a doucai cup with mountains and river, in the
Wang Shifu (1260-1336). In style the illustration
Palace Museum, Beijing, is published in Qingdai
echoes the celebrated works of the painter
yuyao ciqi, vol. 1, pt. 1, Beijing, 2005, pl. 76; and
Chen Hongshou (1598-1652), who created
another decorated with a landscape in underglaze
multiple woodblock prints of the play from 1630.
blue, in the Shanghai Museum, Shanghai, is
Scenes from popular literature are rarely found
illustrated in Kangxi Porcelain Wares from the
on Kangxi imperial porcelains, particularly on
Shanghai Museum Collection, Shanghai, 1998,
small vessels such as these cups. It is possible
pl. 29. For the Jiajing prototype, see one painted
that a small group of wares were decorated
with rams in cobalt, included in the exhibition The
with such narrative designs as another means
Fame of Flame. Imperial Wares of the Jiajing and
of consolidating his right to the throne as a
Wanli Periods, Art Gallery, The Chinese University
foreign ruler. Kangxi is known to have worked
of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 2009, cat. no. 12;
incessantly to understand China’s history, culture
and a yellow-glazed version of larger size, from
and achievements to gain and retain the respect
the Sir Percival David collection and now in the
necessary to rule over a predominantly Han-
British Museum, London, included in Illustrated
Chinese elite. Further small porcelain vessels
Catalogue of Ming and Qing Monochrome Wares
decorated with " gural scenes from literature
in the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art,
include a cup also depicting a passage from
London, 1989, no. A 595.
Xixiangji, illustrated in Regina Krahl, Chinese

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