Page 32 - 2019 October Important Chinese Art Sotheby's Hong Kong

fig. 1
Small famille-rose bowl with prunus and lingzhi, mark and period of Yongzheng
© Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing
圖一
清雍正 粉彩春梅靈芝小盌 《大清雍正年製》款
© 北京故宮博物院藏

art. Believed to hold magical powers, the lingzhi bestowed in the Qing period, it is most likely that the Emperor would
humans with physical and spiritual strength. It was also have held it in high regard.
associated with special locations and sites of deep spiritual The pairing of the prunus and lingzhi appears to be an
and religious significance. For example, eating fungus grown early Yongzheng period variation of the better known
on the sacred mountains provided one with an intimate imagery of the prunus, lingzhi and bamboo, as well as a
connection with nature. The lingzhi’s association with the further composite which also includes peach blossoms and
teachings of the Daoist canons, as well as its presence in flowering camellia. See a slightly smaller bowl (diameter 9.2
the context of the deity Shennong, the bearded sage shown cm), painted with branches of soft pink prunus blossoms
holding a basket filled with lingzhi, shows its diverse appeal and lingzhi on the exterior and three blossoms on the
to different levels in society.
interior, which may have served as an inspiration for the
On the present bowl the lingzhi reiterates the wish for the present piece. The bowl is from the imperial collection
pursuit of youth, as hinted upon in Lady Du’s poem, and the and is included in The Complete Collection of Treasures
Daoist concept of immortality. The Yongzheng Emperor was of the Palace Museum. Porcelains with Cloisonne Enamel
a keen practitioner of the Daoist teachings, as well as being Decoration and Famille Rose Decoration, Hong Kong, 1999,
versed in ancient poetry and would have been familiar with pl. 70 (fig. 1). Prunus and lingzhi with the addition of green
Lady Du’s poem. Furthermore, considering that she was the bamboo branches may be seen on a slightly larger pair of
only female poet whose work was included in the anthology Yongzheng-marked bowls, in the Baur Collection, Geneva,
Tang shi sanbai shou [Three Hundred Tang Poems] compiled illustrated in John Ayers, Chinese Ceramics in the Baur

30 SOTHEBY ’S IMPORTANT CHINESE ART