Page 18 - Bonhams Hong K June 2016

The Property of a Gentleman 紳士藏品

3
A LARGE MING-STYLE BLUE AND WHITE
'NINE-CHILONG' VASE, MEIPING
18th century
Of tapering form, rising from the slightly flared foot to the high rounded
shoulders, surmounted by the waisted neck and rounded rim, finely
painted in varying shades of blue around the central register with nine
chi dragons amidst a meandering leafy lotus blossom scroll, between
a continuous lotus scroll around the shoulders and lotus petal panels
framing floral garlands above the foot, the neck with a band of upright
lappets.
47.1cm (18 1/2in) high

HK$300,000 - 400,000
US$39,000 - 52,000

十八世紀 仿明式青花九龍穿花紋梅瓶

Provenance 來源:
A European private collection

歐洲私人收藏

The present vase is finely painted in the Ming-style with varying shades
of blue imitating the 'heaping and piling' effect of the high iron-content
cobalt blue used during the early Ming dynasty. In decoration, the nine
chi dragons, a popular theme also represented in other mediums,
including jade, cloisonné enamel, glass and rhinoceros horn, may
allude to the 'nine sons of the dragon', with the number nine seen as
the number of heaven, associated with the emperor.

Compare with a related Ming-style blue and white moonflask, 18th
century, which was sold at Christie's London on 10 May 2011, lot 270.

瓶口微撇，短頸，豐肩，長圓腹漸收，圈足。通體青花繪四層紋飾，
主題紋飾繪九龍穿花紋，輔以蕉葉、纏枝蓮，如意雲頭、變形蓮瓣紋
等邊飾。此瓶造型飽滿，構圖疏密有致，運筆自然，盡顯嫻熟繪畫技
巧，所施青花翠麗，略有暈散但層次清晰，以筆端點染鐵鏽斑痕，有
仿明代「宣青」遺風。整體端莊典雅。

此瓶所飾九龍紋飾有古代傳說「龍生九子」或「九龍在天」之意。在
中國傳統文化裏，「九」代表最高權威的「天數」，用來形容天子至
高無上的地位。類似的紋飾也可見於其他器物上，例如玉器、掐絲琺
瑯器、料器和犀牛角杯等。倫敦佳士得曾售出一件十八世紀的仿明式
抱月瓶可資參考，2011年5月10日，編號270。

16 | BONHAMS