Page 17 - Yuan Dynasty Ceramics

Chapter 07 (pp. 330-385)_Layout 1 7/7/10 5:42 PM Page 346

C&C: Silo image

7.23. Ding ware molded dish or plate with design of boys playing in a garden, Jin-Yuan
period, thirteenth century, 2.7 cm tall, 22.1 cm diameter. Sir Percival David Collection at
the British Museum.

among flowers bearing a dated inscription equivalent to phoenixes, and human or animal figures in landscape set-
the year 1305 (see Fig. 7.22). tings that are framed by an ogival window.
Utilitarian vessels were the specialty of the Cizhou The fish motif was used during the Yuan dynasty not
kilns. Slip-painted inscriptions on surviving Jin and Yuan only at the Cizhou kilns but also at the Longquan,
wares give dates or contents, such as “good wine,” re- Jingdezhen, and Jizhou kiln complexes (Fig. 7.24). At this
vealing their main use as containers for food or drink. time, the carp symbolized being of good descent, modest
56
Cizhou wares make up 40 percent of all wares excavated and incorruptible. Several paintings dated to the late
at Yuan Dadu (located underneath parts of Beijing). Of Song and early Yuan dynasties—including a handscroll
those excavated, 80 percent were painted with underglaze dated to the twelfth century and attributed to Liu Cai,
iron brown or black pigment. Cizhou wares were popu- now in the St. Louis Art Museum, and another dated
lar, particularly among people living in the affluent non- 1291 by Zhou Dongqing in the collection of the Metro-
Chinese residential districts. A Cizhou-style wine bottle politan Museum of Art—allude to the subtle meaning of
bearing the inscription “inner palace” (neifu), however, this motif for Sung loyalists, who under alien rule felt like
reveals that they were also used in the imperial palace as fish out of water. Any learned man upon seeing such an
wine and storage jars. 55 image would connect it with Confucius’ comment,
Yuan Cizhou wares feature a decidedly looser painting recorded in the “Dazongshi” chapter of Zhuangzi, that
style than do Song wares, and the Mongol preference for “Fish are born in water. Man is born in the Tao [Dao].”
dense patterns is evident on many surviving examples. Since the transformation of the carp into a dragon was
The most common types of Yuan Cizhou wares feature also a symbol of passing examinations to become a Chi-
black to blackish brown iron oxide slip painting on a nese official, the image of fish was a particularly poignant
beige clay body coated with a transparent or peacock blue one for Chinese scholars deprived of the opportunity to
glaze. Common motifs were fish, flowers, dragons, serve as officials. 57

346 Yuan Dynasty Ceramics