Page 27 - March 17, 2020 Impotant Chinese Art, Sotheby's, New York

Fig. 2 Blue and white ‘Eight Treasures’ bowl, Ming Dynasty, Yongle Period. The collection of National Palace Fig. 3 Blue and white ‘lotus-seed’ bowl, Ming Dynasty, Yongle Period. © The Trustees of the British Museum.
Museum. ©National Palace Museum, Taipei.
圖三 明永樂 青花蓮子盌 © 大英博物館受託人
圖二 明永樂 青花八寶蓮子盌 國立故宮博物院藏品 © 國立故宮博物院 台北

In the Yongle reign, the imperial court controlled not only the 目前存世同類盌僅有數例，兩例藏於台 now in the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, illustrated in 編號158；白蘭士敦曾將其所藏永樂及宣
design and production of the wares from the imperial kilns, 北國立故宮博物院，其一載於《明瓷名 John Ayers, Far Eastern Ceramics in the Victoria and Albert 德例同錄於白蘭士敦，《明初官窰考》，
but also their distribution. Yongle porcelain was not available Museum, London, 1980, pl. 46; and another sold at Christie’s 北京，1938年，圖版5及6，其中之宣德例
through the usual trading channels, which had brought Yuan 品圖錄•洪武窰 永樂窰 宣德窰》，東 Hong Kong, 29th May 2007, lot 1452.
porcelains to the lands of the Near and Middle East and to 京，1977年，圖版21；其二曾展於《明代 The National Palace Museum also owns a version of Xuande 後轉入里埃斯科收藏。永宣兩朝盌例紋飾
East Africa. They were made and distributed under strict 初年瓷器特展》，國立故宮博物院，台 mark and period, included in the exhibition Mingdai Xuande 非常相近，但明顯永樂畫工更勝一籌。
court supervision, with seconds being destroyed and buried 北，1982年，編號24（圖二）；另一例藏 guanyao jinghua tezhan tulu/Catalogue of the Special
so that they could not be copied, which clearly increased 於阿德比爾寺，現存德黑蘭伊朗國家博物 Exhibition of Selected Hsüan-te Imperial Porcelains of the 此外亦可參考四件繪相類風格紋飾的永樂
value and demand. While pieces of larger size were much 館，圖載於三杉隆敏，《中近東の中国 Ming Dynasty, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1998, no. 158; 盌例，尺寸較小：其中兩例為饅頭心盌，
exported, fine porcelains in small sizes such as this bowl were and 另外兩例為蓮子盌器形，四例皆藏於北京
mostly sent to the court and can be found in the palace col- 磁器》，香港，1981年，卷3，編號A.53
lections of Beijing and Taipei, and are rarely found abroad. ；再比一例，出自 George Eumorfopoulos Brankston illustrated his Yongle bowl together with a Xuande 故宮博物院，圖載於《明代洪武永樂御窰
version also in his and later the Riesco Collection, in A. D.
Only very few companion bowls appear to be recorded: two in 及Walter Sedgwick夫人收藏，售於倫敦 Brankston, Early Ming Wares of Chingtechen, Beijing, 1938, 瓷器》，北京，2015年，圖版64至67。
the National Palace Museum, Taipei, one illustrated in Ming ci 蘇富比1940年5月29日，編號220，現 pls 5 and 6. The design of both versions is remarkably similar,
mingpin tulu. Hongwu yao Yongle yao Xuande Yao [Illustrated 存於倫敦大英博物館，參考霍吉淑， but the Yongle version shows the stronger painting. 類如本盌盌心所繪花首內扣三葉式紋樣
catalogue of important pieces of Ming porcelain, Hongwu 《Ming Ceramics in the British Museum》， 者，Melikian-Chirvani（出處同上，頁96）
ware, Yongle ware, Xuande ware], Tokyo, 1977, pl. 21; the 倫敦，2001年，編號3: 28（圖三）；另 In the Yongle period, four related designs are known from 形容其為「抽象式蓮苞」。同類風格紋飾
other included in the exhibition Mingdai chunian ciqi tezhan smaller bowls: two of shallow mantouxin shape with quatre- 亦可見於紐約大都會藝術博物館收藏的
mulu/Catalogue of a Special Exhibition of Early Ming Period 有一例，出自白蘭士敦及W. Roberts夫人 foil and lambrequin motifs and only a narrow floral border on
Porcelain, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1982, no. 24 (fig. 收藏，現存於倫敦維多利亞與阿爾伯特 the inside, and two of lotus-bud shape, with formal designs 一件具有大馬士革風格的明初鐵頭盔之
2); one from the Ardabil Shrine, now in the National Museum 博物館，圖載於John Ayers，《Far Eastern only and no floral motifs at all; examples of all four designs 上，其所飾花首之間另輔以雜寶紋，參
of Iran, Tehran, illustrated in Takatoshi Misugi, Chinese Ceramics in the Victoria and Albert Museum》 are in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Mingdai 考柯律格及霍吉淑編，《Ming. Fifty Years
Porcelain Collections in the Near East. Topkapi and Ardebil, ，倫敦，1980年，圖版46；香港佳士得亦 Hongwu Yongle yuyao ciqi/Imperial Porcelains from the that Changed China》，大英博物館，倫
Hong Kong, 1981, vol. 3, no. A.53; one, from the collections Reigns of the Hongwu and Yongle in the Ming Dynasty, Beijing, 敦，2014年，頁151。
of George Eumorfopoulos and Mrs. Walter Sedgwick, sold in 曾售一例於2007年5月29日，編號1452。 2015, pls 64-67.
our London rooms, 29th May 1940, lot 220, and now in the A lambrequin design topped by trefoil motifs, “ultimately a
British Museum, in Jessica Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in 台北國立故宮博物院亦收藏一宣德例，署 stylization of lotus-buds” according to Melikian-Chirvani (op.
the British Museum, London, 2001, no. 3: 28 (fig. 3); one 款，曾展於《明代宣德官窰精華特展圖 cit., p. 96), appears, together with precious emblems, also
from the collection of A.D. Brankston and Mrs W. Roberts, 錄》，國立故宮博物院，台北，1998年， on the damascene decoration of an early Ming iron helmet in
the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, see Craig Clunas
and Jessica Harrison-Hall, eds, Ming. Fifty Years that Changed
China, The British Museum, London, 2014, p. 151.

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