Page 236 - 2018 Hong Kong Important Chieese Art

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A RARE LOBED YELLOW-GROUND AND 明嘉靖 黃地紅彩八卦雲鶴紋倭角長方蓋盒
IRON-RED DECORATED ‘CRANE’ BOX AND 《大明嘉靖年製》款
COVER
來源：
MARK AND PERIOD OF JIAJING
2009年購於東京浦上蒼穹堂
of quatrelobed form, the box potted with rounded sides resting
on a short foot of corresponding form, the exterior decorated
in iron red with four cranes, each bird alternating with two
ruyi cloud scrolls, all below a classic scroll band bordering the
straight rim and repeated at the rim of the cover, the cover
with a rounded border similarly decorated with a frieze of flying
cranes and ruyi cloud scrolls, surrounding a raised quatrelobed
panel enclosing a crane framed by ruyi cloud scrolls and the
Eight Trigrams, all against a bright yellow ground, the white
base inscribed in underglaze blue with a six-character reign
mark
12.6 cm, 4⅞ in.
PROVENANCE
Acquired from Uragami Sokyu-do Co. Ltd., Tokyo, 2009.
HK$ 800,000-1,000,000
US$ 102,000-128,000

A devoted follower of Daoism, the Jiajing Emperor’s pursuit 嘉靖帝一生篤信道教，迷戀方士丹藥，以求長生不老。景
of immortality led not only to his infatuation with alchemy but 德鎮御廠燒製大量瓷器及道教用具，以供宮中大量法事活
the domination of Daoist rituals in court, a natural result of
動。在器物裝飾上，多用雲鶴、八卦等仙道圖案，以表得
which was the proliferation of imperial wares commissioned
道成仙之意願。
for ritualistic purposes. Supplied especially by Jingdezhen,
such artefacts brim with Daoist imagery such as cranes
and the ‘eight trigrams’, presenting the promise of attaining 黃地紅釉裝飾似乎僅見於明嘉靖一朝，並深得皇帝的青
immortality and exaltation. 睞。「黃上紅」釉彩套迭工藝繁複，窰燒三次方能成器。
先以高溫燒瓷胎；第二次以高溫燒成黃釉器；最後以紅彩
Rarely employed, the colour scheme of the present piece
may have been specific to the Jiajing reign, during which 塗飾紋飾之外的地子，襯托出黃色花紋，以低溫烘烤，稍
its auspicious significance was fully appreciated by the 一不慎，前功盡費，不能成器。
emperor. It was most likely its onerous production method
that precluded a more widespread use: not only were three 此盒器形嬌小，傳世品中不為多見，甚為珍罕。
firings – one for the clear-glazed porcelain, one for the yellow
overglaze enamel, and a third for the design-bearing iron-red
enamel – necessary, the difficulty of even-handedly applying
the red around the designs in yellow must have contributed to
an exceptionally high rate of failure.
The small size of this present piece is also noted for its rarity
among heirlooms of a similar type.

Mark

234 SOTHEBY’S 蘇富比