Page 78 - The Meiji Aesthetic Christie's Hong Kong.pdf

Mythical animals

The dragon is associated with Buddhism, Shinto and a wealth of legends as a harbinger
of fertility, bliss and imperial power. The Dragon King of the Sea lives in a palace in the
depths of the ocean from which he controls the weather and tides.

In China, dragon is described to be the most powerful mythical creature, thoroughly
depicted in its kaleidoscopic material history from neolithic artifacts to Ming and
Qing dynasties porcelains. As a symbol of power and supremacy, dragon represents the
emperor’s status and is often regarded as the principle in the imperial aesthetics from
architectural elements of palaces to royal art collections. Painted by Chen Rong in the
Southern Song dynasty and highly acclaimed by the Qianlong Emperor, the majestic ‘Six
Dragons’ scroll, one of the most important dragon-themed painting in Chinese history,
was the centerpiece at the Fujita Museum Collection sold by Christie’s New York in 2017
with a record-breaking history. The cultural and historical infuence of Chinese dragon
can also be found in Korea, Vietnam and India.

The curious creature shachi 鯱 has the body of a fsh and the head of a tiger or dragon.
Capable of blowing water from its mouth, it is said to control the fow of waves. Shachi
also have allusions to bravery for its ferce determination to take on sea creatures much
larger than itself. A male and female shachi were adapted as standing crests on the end tiles
of Japanese roofs for protection against fre, given the relationship of the fsh to water.

In Chinese legend, there is a dragon-like fsh that serves as the vehicle for the God
of Literature Kuixing 魁星. The well-known proverb du zhan ao tou 獨占鰲頭
compliments those who place well in any competition and expresses the wish for literary
achievement.

神獸

佛教及神道教皆視龍為神聖之物，自古深受帝皇尊崇，相信其獨具神力，能使大
地風調雨順，國泰民安。據說海龍王潛居深海宮殿，能興雲降雨，操控潮汐。
中國自古視龍為神獸之首，其幻變多姿的神秘形象通貫古今，遍及新石器時代器
物以至明清瓷器。歷代帝皇皆視龍為至尊無上，龍紋裝飾貫徹宮廷建築設計。南
宋陳容繪《六龍圖》氣勢磅薄，筆法精奇，堪稱中國繪畫史上之曠世巨作，2017
年紐約佳士得藤田美術館珍藏專場拍出，創下世界紀錄。龍在中國文化意涵豐
富，影響力遍及朝鮮、越南及印度。
「鯱」為日本神話中呈龍首魚身之古代神獸，口吐浪花，可興風作浪。日本建築
興在屋簷兩端飾雌雄「鯱鉾」，據說可防火避邪。

同類神獸在中國稱為鰲。相傳古代文昌之神魁星手執筆斗，立於䱯頭之上，故有
「魁星踢斗，獨占鰲頭」之說，世人信奉以祈求文運亨通，青雲得路。