Page 166 - Arts D'Asie June 20 2017 Christie's

■ 208 By the reign of the Wanli Emperor, Ming potter have mastered and
were ever improving their art of making ever bigger porcelain vases,
RARE VASE EN PORCELAINE BLEU BLANC, MEIPING inspired by the trend started under the reign of the Xuande Emperor.
CHINE, DYNASTIE MING, MARQUE A SIX CARACTERES ET Large size blue and white porcelain pieces were treasured objects and
EPOQUE WANLI (1573-1619) exemplary of Ming dynasty achievement in blue and white porcelain
artistry. Eight large format meiping with their covers still on were
Impressionnant par sa taille, le vase est décoré de deux majestueux discovered in the Wanli Emperor’s Ding Ling mausoleum in 1958. An
phénix volant parmi les nuages auspicieux stylisés, le pied et example with cover and decorated with dragons in the collection of
l’épaulement sont ornés de pétales stylisés, la marque Wanli the Beijing Palace Museum is illustrated in Blue and White Porcelain
horizontale à six caractères en script régulier souligne le col ; fêle. with Underglaze Red (II), The Complete Collection of Treasures of the
Hauteur : 68.5 cm. (27 in.) Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 2000, pl. 160; see another smaller one
with dragons on pl. 161. Here, the two phoenixes in fight are echoing
€60,000-80,000 $66,000-88,000 each other’s movement. Another with phoenixes is illustrated in The
£51,000-68,000 World’s Greatest Collections, Oriental Ceramics, Vol. 8, Museum of
Far Eastern Antiquities, Stockholm, Kodansha 1982, pl. 246. All of
PROVENANCE those vases show similar decoration with dragons or phoenixes on
a background of scrolling clouds and lappet bands around the foot
Private French collection, in the family since the 18th century by and shoulder with the reign mark inscribed horizontally above the
repute. shoulder band. The board shoulder and elongated neck as well as the
slightly faring mouth rim are also typical of Wanli period large size
A LARGE AND RARE BLUE AND WHITE ‘PHOENIX’ VASE, MEIPING meiping. Compare to Christie’s, London, 11 May 2015, lot 12 (fg.1.) and
CHINA, MING DYNASTY, WANLI SIX-CHARACTER MARK AND OF Christie’s, Paris, 22 November 2006, lot 282.
THE PERIOD (1573-1619)

明萬曆 青花雙鳳穿雲紋梅瓶 六字楷書橫款
來源：法國私人珍藏, 傳於十八世紀入藏家族

208 (another view) (fg. 1).