Page 50 - Nov. 2019 Christie's Hong Kong Important Chinese Ceramics

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A RARE LARGE BLUE AND WHITE ‘DRAGON’ ᪺༒ᶑ 㤎⩈ᩅ᥆㮾٫㹪ॲᇽᦶ᧾
BASIN
KANGXI SIX-CHARACTER MARK IN UNDERGLAZE BLUE WITHIN A Ϝᬜ
DOUBLE CIRCLE AND OF THE PERIOD (1662-1722)
㲞ᳰ⼖༛ᬘ卿 ჺ ᝲ ᚚ卿ᐽ৅ ⽚
The circular basin is painted on the interior with a ferocious
three-clawed dragon emerging from swirling waves, above two ទᰚᇵ⥾ս㷚䂆㍩ࢇஎ卿⊺㬷⊂࡚卿㇦Ӭᢣ⒞ڟӲ‣䂆㒭㔮ᙻᱡ᭢Ԡ
carp and a fish partially submerged in the rolling waters. The ӳ卿Ӵᙹᝳݦཫ㸣㷚ࣿཎ㷚卿㎜ᇨ೥՞㵶ԋ☑⯟卿㔮⎈䂆㧰ǯ᳖༈⯠⻦
base is inscribed with a reign mark within a double circle. Ӭ։⡠㱈⏟ऱ⎏ᄮᾭᰚ卿ཨ༿ࣿჺ᪪⊶ཎ卻 ݩߎ卼卿→⻦࢈՗ᘢ
17¿ in. (43.5 cm.) diam. ༈ࢷ⁒㩴卿㇦ ჺ㲞ᳰ߅‸ᘢ༈ࢷ⁒㩴⻦ᙔ⁒Ⅷ৅ݥ㫀Ƕ㬪Ɽ㞏ㅏ
⡚卻Ӵ卼Ƿ卿எ ⽚ǯஇ⛁ᘢ༈ࢷ⁒㩴Ք⻦Ӭ׾卻 ݩߎ卼卿ⶬ㢙ᙻ
HK$500,000-800,000 US$65,000-100,000 ჺझ࢈߅‸Ƕ≢଍ӳ⎏䂆⡠Ƿ卿எ ⽚ǯ
PROVENANCE
Sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 30 April 1991, lot 60
The lively imagery depicted on the current washer is a reference to the
story of a carp transforming into a dragon after leaping over the ‘Dragon
Gate’, symbolising the success of a candidate in passing the civil
servant examination in ancient China and onto a path of honour and
status.
Compare to a basin of the same design but of slightly smaller size (38.7
cm.) and with a smaller Kangxi reign mark, in the Qing Court Collection
and now in the Palace Museum, illustrated in Blue and White Porcelain
with Underglazed Red (III), The Complete Collection of Treasures of
the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 2010, no. 54. Another example of this
type in the National Palace Museum (39 cm.) is illustrated in Catalogue
of a Special Exhibition of Dragon-Motif Porcelain in the National Palace
Museum, Taipei, 1983, no. 63.

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