Page 250 - Chinese porcelains collected by Mr. and Mrs. Charles P. Taft, Cincinnati, Ohio, by John Getz

A CATALOGUE OF CHINESE PORCELAINS

of longevity coming from the fabled tree "Fan-tao" growing in the domeiin of Hsi-wang-

mu, conferring with it the gift of immortaKty on the venerable person depicted, possibly

the King Mu, who in his travels (B.C. 985) was entertained by this fabled queen of
the Western regions : or it may be the fairy-queen's future consort, Tung Wang-kung, an

Eastern king.

A young prince stands by this favored mortal, fondly embracing him, while a very

tall person in court attire is holding a scroll, indicating a possible interruption in the read-

ing of a state paper.

A child in a wheel-chair, wath an attendant, is engaged in the meeuitime watching the

antics of three boys passing near the terrace; palms and an old pine tree in the back-

ground complete a masterly handling of this group, that is probably copied from the early

masters of the Sung or the Yuan dynasty.

The four panels described are surrounded by a margin with fine lines, effectively fram-

Aing them, and the curved shoulders carry peach blossoms. medallion, also in the form

of this fruit, with green ground, embellishes the neck, portraying Lao Tsze borne on

clouds and holding a branch of the sacred peach tree, which, legends state, blossoms

Anevery three thousand years and yields its fruit three thousand years later. inscription

on the neck finishes the fascinating homogeneous decoration of this vase : from a little

poem, entitled "Mu-tan" (Peony), the author of which was Han Tsung, who lived dur-
ing the T'ang dynasty. The poem refers, in part, to " the dew of the fairies' golden
hand," and also to " the precious hall, " alluding to the Han-lin Academy. "The jewelled

hall, " a term of respect for the Han-lin (Professor F. Hirth, Ph.D.). S. Lockhart's

" Manual of Chinese Quotations " gives a transcription of this poem reading : " In the
morning its beauty widely spreads the dew of fairy hands ; at night its fragrance in-

tensely attracts the v«nd of the Jade-stone hall, " a reference to the reputation of Han-lin

academicians.

The foot is in biscuit, with sunken panel bearing a blue leaf-mark (Artemisia), with

a small ancient inscription under glcize.

Its provenance is ascribed to the era of K'ang-hsi (1662-1722).

Height, 19' 2 inches.
Shoulder, S'/e x S'/g inches.

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