Page 60 - Baofang Collection Imperial Ceramics, Christie's Hong Kong May 29, 2019

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A RARE MING WUCAI OVOID JAR ᒞࢧ㤐nj̪ྑ㲌㴥Ռ㦉♄ല➭nj㢴२Վಧ᜷ᕋᢎ
JIAJING SIX-CHARACTER MARK IN UNDERGLAZE-BLUE WITHIN A
DOUBLE CIRCLE AND OF THE PERIOD (1522-1566) ⧉⏜ऑ卿⒜㯝卿㎒⫒卿ᙏ⭬卿஄㑷ǯ㘻㵲ᙼ㞏ӳՆᆭㅛ㱈卿
The jar is decorated in overglaze turquoise, yellow, green, iron- ⭬㛑ⵘᆨ㧷ݏݤߎ⥾㺨㽁⡠卿⫒㛑⯝ᄓ㛑∪㱈ᐙ៨Ɽࢭ⡠ࣿ
red and black enamels with six quatrefoil cartouches, alternately ࢦՀ♎ᦼ଍卿ӳᓎ㘭ᛞ㞠ᙹशἃ厍⇂Ǯᓎ⟠Ǯ䀦Ǯ㥆Ǯ⺔Ǯ
enclosing phoenix or cranes, on a ground of twelve beribboned ᖿ䀦卿Ӵᓎ㘭ᛞ㞠ᙹशἃ厍⛳Ǯ⛵Ǯ⇨Ǯ⦾Ǯ㮮័Ǯ⭤䀦ǯ
musical instruments interspersed with floral sprays, between bands 㯝ӳǮ㑷ӳ⥾ᆭ㫡⡠ǯᄓ㬪Ɽ㫐஄ݤǸഌᚺૃ㬬ჺㅳǹᥓᝧ
of clouds around the rim and above the foot. ᪪ǯ
4 in. (10 cm.) high, box
ϝᬝ
HK$400,000-600,000 US$52,000-77,000
㬱㈊లⅧ⻦
PROVENANCE ⡥⡙צ೥ᇑ卿 ჺ ᝲ ᚚ卿ᐽ৅ ⽚
Jingguantang Collection
᫉଍⡠㱈ࢦߎ⧎㇦ǯഌⲖࢷ⁒㱦⻦ᝳӬ։଍ᆨǮཨ༿ࣿ⡠㱈⎐⏟֎
Sold at Christie’s New York, 16 September 1998, lot 363
⎏㘆ַ׾卿ዂᦼ଍㮵ᄑӶऱ卿㖊ᙻ +FTTJDB )BSSJTPO )BMM ⶬǶ.JOH
The decoration of this jar, especially the depiction of the twelve musical $FSBNJDTǷ卿ٳᘹ卿 卿⤔⽚ ǯᗌה⩢Ꮢ㘚卿᫉ࢦՀ։ᦼ଍ջヿ
instruments, is very rare. The twelve instruments depicted on this jar in Իԋஇᦼ଍ㅏ⎏Ǹݨ㮥ǹ卿Ք࣊㞖Ǯ⒢Ǯ⢵Ǯ⛛ǮࢂǮகǮ㬺Ǯណǯ
counterclockwise order are: qin, pan pipes, drum, two-ended gong, xiao,
hand drum in the top row; sheng, flute, se, chime, castanets, waist drum
in the lower row.
A jar of this form and decoration but with the twelve musical
instruments arranged in a slightly different order is in the British
Museum, illustrated in Jessica Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics, London,
2001, no.9:108, where the author explains that these instruments are
traditional Chinese musical instruments whose origin may be traced
to the Shang and Zhou dynasties, and that they represent the Bayin,
‘Eight Classes or Sounds’ of instrument – stone, metal, silk, bamboo,
wood, skin, gourd and earth. The author makes a further remark on the
importance of musical rites at the Ming imperial court.

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