Page 53 - Important Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, Hong Kong

A PAIR OF LONGQUAN 天外飛青 —
TOBI SEIJI GARLIC-MOUTH 龍泉窯青釉褐斑蒜頭瓶
BOTTLE VASES

The present pair of garlic-mouth vases belong to a group 此對 龍 泉 窯「 飛 青
of important type of Longquan ware decorated with iron- 瓷 」蒜 頭 瓶 器 形
brown spots which has been much admired by the Japanese and 典 雅，釉 水 厚 潤，每 件 周
is usually known by its Japanese name tobi seiji. Tobi seiji is famed
for its rarity- there has been only a handful of tobi seiji vases 身 飾 褐 斑 十九個，排 佈 得
published. These two tobi seiji vases are the only known examples
that still remain as a pair, making them highly desirable. The 當，繁 而 不 亂，獨 具 妙 趣。
beauty of tobi seiji lies primarily in the rich dark brown spots that
create a striking visual impact on the otherwise subtle celadon 「飛 青 瓷」為龍 泉窯 褐 斑
surface. In fact, the name tobi seiji, literally ‘flying [spot] green
ware’ in Japanese, was given by ancient Japanese tea masters for the 點 彩 器 物 在日本的 專 名。
dramatic appearance of iron spots (Kobayashi Hitoshi, ‘Research
on National Treasure Tobi Seiji Vase’, Longquanyao ciqi yanjiu, 一如「砧手」、「天龍寺手」
Beijing, 2013, p. 404). Such spots were added, using a brush,
to the surface of the unfired glaze before the pieces were fired. 等 名 稱，「飛 青 瓷 」是 酷 愛
These seemingly spontaneously added spots in fact follow a very
thoughtful design principle. As seen on the present examples, 龍 泉窯 的日本茶 道 家 冠 以
the iron spots were arranged in seven alternating bands of two
or three spots from the mouth to the lower body, adding up 的 雅 號，取 褐 斑 在青 瓷 上
to 19 spots in total on each vase. Upon closer examination, we
can also see that many of these spots were painted with more 「放 飛」之 意。（小 林仁，
than one brush stroke to create an overlapping texture. Celadon
wares embody the ultimate serenity in the natural world. On the 「國寶『飛青瓷花生』考」，
contrary, iron spots impose an impression of dramatic movement.
The juxtaposition of these two contradictory elements was a bold 《龍 泉 窯 瓷 器 研 究》，北
experiment, yielding a harmonious outcome. The paradox that
the timeless beauty of celadon can be synthesized with volatile 京，2 013 年，4 0 3頁）「飛 青
‘flying spots’ might account for the enduring fascination with tobi
seiji. It is also interesting to note that the unglazed foot rim, which 瓷 」數 量 稀 少，歷 來 為 鑒
turned reddish-brown at the end of firing cycle, adds another layer
of colour contrast to the piece, and therefore further enhances its 藏 家 所 珍 視，成 對 保 存 更
beauty (see Kobayashi Hitoshi, ibid, p. 404).
是 絕 無 僅 有。目前已 知 成
Only one other vase of similar shape and decoration, measuring
28.2 cm. high, appears to have been published. This is registered 對的龍泉窯「飛青瓷」瓶只
in Japan as Important Cultural Property and now belongs to
the Ise Cultural Foundation, illustrated in Masterpieces of Chinese 有是次拍品的這對，足見其
Ceramic Art Exhibition: Treasure of Ise Collection, Tokyo, 2012, pp.
54-55, no. 41 (fig. 1). In addition, a broken tobi seiji vase of this 珍 罕 程 度。「飛 青 瓷 」之美
form was found in the Ichijo-dani Asakura family historic ruins
in modern-day Fukui prefecture (fig. 2). The Ichijo-dani castle is 在 於褐斑與青釉對比之下
the base of the Asakura family, which was destroyed by the army
of Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) in 1573. The last head of the 產 生 的強 烈 視 覺 感 受。這
Asakura family, Yoshikage Asakura (1533-1573) was known for
his cultural refinement and was proficient in tea ceremony. The 些褐斑是用筆以氧化鐵為
Song/Yuan ceramic sherds including the tobi seiji garlic-mouth
vase found in the Ichijo-dani site are believed to belong to this 著色劑在燒製之前繪於釉

上 的。褐 斑 的 繪 製 看似 漫 fig. 1 A tobi seiji garlic-mouth vase, the
不 經 心，實 則 有 著 精 妙 的
排 佈。以 本 對「飛 青 瓷 」瓶 Ise Collection, image courtesy of the ISE

Cultural Foundation
圖一 龍泉飛青瓷蒜頭瓶 伊勢收藏

為 例，十九個 鐵 斑 從 上 至

下分 七周配 置，每一周繪 褐 斑 二至 三個，相 互 交 錯，予人 以一種自

然 灑 脫 又不失秩 序 的 和 諧感。細 查 之下，更 可見 諸 多 鐵 斑 為 幾 筆

繪成，而非簡單一點，這種作法更增添了斑點的層次感和觀賞性。

青瓷 所展現 的 往往 是內 斂靜 謐 的 意 境，而褐 色 鐵 斑 則 給人 以飛 放

的動感。「飛青瓷」大膽的將這兩種截然不同的藝術元素融合在一

起，營造出了一種令人意想不到的美感。這種充滿禪意的美學理念

應 該 就 是「飛 青瓷」經 久不 衰 的藝 術 源泉吧。此 外，如 小 林仁先 生

所 說，「飛 青 瓷」圈足刮 釉 部分產 生 的火石 紅 與 褐 斑 遙相 呼應，亦

提升了器物整體的色彩協調效果（小林仁，404頁）。這種種巧妙的

設計和釉彩和諧的效果可見「飛青瓷」作為龍泉名品實至名歸。

「飛青瓷」蒜頭瓶傳世僅有一件近似例，高28.2公分，為伊勢家族
珍藏，登記為日本重要文化財，見《中国陶磁名品展：イセコレ
クションの至宝》，石川縣立美術館，2012年，54-55頁，編號41
（圖一）。除此以外，日本福井縣一乘谷朝倉氏遺址出土有一件

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