Page 202 - J. P Morgan Collection of Chinese Art and Porcelain

CASE XIl] THE MORGAN COLLECTION

TWO309,310. JARS. White crackle. Each deco-

rated with a lake and mountain landscape, in intense

blue.

Ch'ien-lung (i 736-1 795). Height S}<^ inches.

311. COVERED JAR. Pure white porcelain, Lange

Lijsen pattern in deep blue, with three rows of round-
topped panels, the upper tier showing the eight Immor-

tals with their distinctive emblems; the second, ladies

playing on various musical instruments, and the lower,

ladies standing at ease, every third panel having a jar-

diniere on a stand with flov/ering plant.

Mark: Ta Ming Chia-ching nien chih (Made in the

—reign of Chia-ching of the great Ming dynasty). [1522-

1 566 apocryphal.]

K'ang-hsi (1662-1722). Height 19 inches.

312. GLOBULAR FLASK with long neck. Pure

white porcelain, decorated in brilliant blue. The mo-

tive of the decoration of this fme piece is the transmi-

gration of the fish into the dragon, emblematic of the

success of the literary aspirant to official rank. The

fish, a gigantic carp in the picture, has surmounted the

Lung Men, or "Dragon's Gate," seen as two rocks with

the swirling waves of the Yellow River between them,

and is just about to enter the Yti Men, the "Jade Por-

tal," of the celestial regions, a two-storied pavilion,

where it attains its metempsychosis. The dragon ap-

pears coiled round the neck and shoulder of the bottle,

a powerfully designed, four-clawed scaly monster,

enveloped in flames, as it ascends into the firmament

pursuing the effulgent jewel of omnipotence.

K'ang-hsi (1662-1722). Height \']^4 inches.

313. BEAKER with spreading mouth. Lange Lijsen

pattern on pure white porcelain in dark blue. Four
tiers of panels with foliated tops. In the top tier chil-

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