Page 22 - Chinese Decorative Arts: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 55, no. 1 (Summer, 1997)

Brush washer
Lotus-Leaf
...................................................................................
Southern to Yuan 12th-14th century
song
dynasty,
Nephrite
L. 63/4 in. (17.1 cm)
Promised Florence and Herbert
Gift of
Irving

Oval with
Cup Dragons
southern to Yuan
dynasty, 12th-14th century
song
Nephrite
L. 4 5/8 in. (11.7 cm)
Promised ofFlorence and Herbert Irving
Gift
This brush washer and cup exemplify the incised, giving the piece a more naturalistic of Southern Song ceramics from kilns pro-
types of jades that are now thought to appearance. The shape of the cup is also some- ducing Qingbai wares in Jiangxi Province or
date from either the Southern Song or Yuan what organic, suggesting growth rather than those making Longquan wares in Zhejiang
dynasties. Both vessels were made from opaque stasis. The body is decorated with an incised Province. Their presence on these vessels
pieces of white nephrite with mineral inclu- curvilinear pattern that resembles the auspi- suggests that a provisional date from the
sions of brown and yellow, colors that may cious lingihi fungus. twelfth through the fourteenth century may
or
account for the "dirty" "smoky" quality of Both pieces have images of sinuous dragons be appropriate, at least until more informa-
jades discussed in sources such as the Song coiling along their sides: three creatures, one tion about Northern and Southern Song and
Huiyao (Essential Records of the Song Govern- holding a lotus bud, are carved on the brush Yuan jades is available. DPL
ment). The brush washer is in the shape of an washer; and two ornament the cup. Dragons
open lotus leaf with a long, elegant stem at of this type are known as chi dragons, or chi-
its base, and the veins of the leaf have been hu-long. They sometimes decorate the exteriors

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