Page 20 - Sotheby's Jie Rui Tang Collection Part II Kangxi Porcelain March 2019

309 A RARE BLUE AND 清康熙 青花海水雲龍紋文具盒
WHITE ‘DRAGON’

PEN BOX AND
COVER

Qing Dynasty, Kangxi Period
of oblong form, the flat cover painted with The present elongated form with rounded ends 來源
a sinuous, writhing dragon emerging from is modeled after an Islamic metal prototype George Eumorfopoulos (1863-1939) 收藏
roiling and cresting waves with scudding known from the 13th century, which was often 倫敦蘇富比1940年5月30日，編號387
skies overhead, all encircled on the side with richly chased and inlaid with gold and silver. W.W. Winkworth (1897-1991) 收藏
a crisp leiwen border, the box painted on Originally closely modeled after an Islamic Duncan Beresford-Jones 收藏
the exterior with an elegant archaistic band form, the shape gradually changed to suit 倫敦佳士得2000年6月6日，編號334
of boldly interlaced scrollwork, the interior the requirements of Chinese calligraphers.
with three circular and one shaped oblong Furthermore, decoration on pen boxes 展覽
compartments, all raised on a channeled included motifs that conveyed auspicious 《抱古融今：潔蕊堂藏康熙瓷器展》，蘇富
unglazed foot (2), coll. no. 1450 messages, such as the aspirational dragon 比，紐約，2014年3月，編號6
motif seen on the present example. Chinese
Length 9 in., 22.9 cm
porcelain interpretations of the form were first
PROVENANCE made with underglaze blue decoration at the 出版
Collection of George Eumorfopoulos (1863- imperial kilns in Jingdezhen during the early R.L. Hobson，《George Eumorfopoulos 珍
藏中國、朝鮮及波斯陶器》，第五冊，倫
1939). Ming dynasty and continued to be popular well 敦，1926年，圖版VII，編號E.34
Sotheby’s London, 30th May 1940, lot 387. into the Qing dynasty. Jeffrey P. Stamen、Cynthia Volk 及倪亦斌，
Collection of W.W. Winkworth (1897-1991). Kangxi period examples of blue and white 《文采卓然：潔蕊堂藏康熙盛世瓷》，布呂
Collection of Duncan Beresford-Jones, Esq. pen boxes are extremely rare and it appears 赫，2017年，圖版24
Christie’s London, 6th June 2000, lot 334. that no other published example is known.
Kangxi period pen boxes with overglaze
EXHIBITED
decoration are known and include a green-
Embracing Classic Chinese Culture, Kangxi ground example from the Qing Court
Porcelain from the Jie Rui Tang Collection, Collection illustrated in The Complete
Sotheby’s New York, March 2014, cat. no. 6. Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum,
Miscellaneous Enamelled Porcelains Plain
LITERATURE
Tricoloured Porcelains, Hong Kong, 2009,
R. L. Hobson, The George Eumorfopoulos pl. 217, and a yellow-ground example with
Collection: Catalogue of the Chinese, Corean phoenix also the Palace Museum, Beijing
and Persian Pottery and Porcelain, vol. V, illustrated in Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong,
London, 1926. pl. VII, E. 34. Qing Porcelain from the Palace Museum, Hong
Jeffrey P. Stamen, Cynthia Volk with Yibin Ni, A Kong, 1989, pl. 102. A white-ground example
Culture Revealed, Kangxi-Era Chinese Porcelain with dragon motif from the collection of Sir
from the Jie Rui Tang Collection, Bruges, 2017, Alfred Beit was sold in our London rooms,
cat. no. 24. 6th November 2013, lot 86. A green-ground
famille-verte on biscuit pen pox and cover
$ 30,000-50,000
with dragon decoration and also from the Jie
Rui Tang Collection was sold in these rooms,
20th March 2018, lot 351. See also a related
example, a Qianlong mark and period blue and
white pen box and cover sold in our Hong Kong
rooms, 30th November 2017, lot 324.

18 SOTHEBY’S