Page 19 - Multifarious Enamels Chiense Art.pdf

fig. 7 A yangcai ‘hundred deer’ vase. Qianlong mark and period.
Collection of the Seikadō Bunko Art Museum
Seikadō Bunko Art Museum Image Archives/DNPartcom
ॱˑ ᪹̖㡲ǎ⌘⣐᧴ྐⅮ㶏ബǎ㤔ࢦਕᐷ༆⟞⻒㩉ⳉި
㤔ࢦਕᐷ༆⟞⻒㩉ɇʄʚɛɅʚɎɇɹ %/1BSUDPN

Society, vol. 74, 2009-2010, p. 24). Lam suggests that this style ᆘ̃עǐ᢬૥䢲ᗆᜬཱᐓኧᕍن؝㗲ᦌ̖㡲ໝⴽ
of reign mark was prevalent from the late 1740s to the late 1780s, ᢍូབྷ䢲⡊ᕴሠިۢ㏩Κⳇ⡩ബⅲໝᢍ঑⧀ᗆᤧ
but notes that the dates could be somewhat stretched at either
ᢷ♅ⅲǙⓧՍ㧛ǚ㗠ܐ䢲で⿉Ւ⮏ηǕ5PXBSET
end (i.e. perhaps into the early 1740s). In view of the various clues
B %BUJOH 'SBNFXPSL GPS 2JBOMPOH *NQFSJBM
to dating available at present, it seems probable that fine blue-
handled ‘hundred deer’ vases, such as the current example, were 1PSDFMBJOǖ䢲㍭ᑞǗᖥᑜ㡦⁅ೀᕒᕒֵǘ
made in the period 1738-1756.
ໝֵⴽ 㦓 ǐᗆᤧほ᳦䢲᢬㧛ໝᢍ㐞ᑞ
The National Palace Museum, Taipei, has in its collection an ໝ͞ᕳ⦰ ໝ͞ᕳ䢲΢㐝ˏ╊६ᆘ㦚␛؟
anonymous Ming dynasty handscroll with a similar theme of ዠעᆘགྷྯ䢮ڭᕖۿ⣵୥ᑞ ໝ͞׀䢯ǐ⿭̅
‘a hundred deer’ in landscape with the addition of groups of
ຄᕖⅲᑚ͞⛪♚䢲͠ᕴሠި᳦ϡⅲ˖̊ⳇ⡩Ⅾ㶏
immortals. It is worth noting that in most instances in the Chinese
ബ䢲᜴ۿ⣵᷂㐤ᑞ ⦰ ໝᕩ㟢ǐ
arts the term ‘a hundred’ was not intended to be taken literally,
but simply implied an abundance. The title of the Ming dynasty
܀٫ᐅ೫Ὂⳉˏູᒝ́ᆾڰǗⅮ⎰ॱǘ䢲❡㏩Κⅲ
scroll, A Hundred Blessings Ⅾ⎰ॱ explains the rebus provided by
the theme. The deer – lu 㶏 – in the paintings (and on the vases) ൶ᗆⅮ㶏䢲˩؟ዢ⟰͗ǐႥ㦚᧚Ⴭⅲᒶ䢲ˮ४Ⳕ⻒
provide a rebus for the word lu ⎰ , which can mean good fortune 㧍ᖏˮⅲǙⅮǚದ䢲ډ൓Ւ̏ㅿ࿋ᐪ↹̃⇸䢲⡊㤖
or blessings. A hundred deer Ⅾ㶏 bai lu thus suggests the wish ۫
ഓᐪǐて₝ⅲឳ㧍㑆̞֨Ⅾ㶏㧍ᖏⅲഄჍǐ₝ˮݸ
૰Ⅾ⎰ shoutian bailu ‘May you receive a hundred blessings from
ബ㌪ᆵ⍷ⅲǙ㶏ǚ䢲㦈ܔǙ⎰ǚ䢲⎰⡅⎼̑䢲ഄჍ
heaven’. The number one hundred is implied by two other rebuses
within the design on the current vase. One of these is provided ⎻⎟ǐᐅ᢬䢲ǙⅮ㶏ǚᔄࡣǙ۫૰Ⅾ⎰ǚǐᕴሠި
by the inclusion of a cypress tree in the design, since the name for ⅲ᝷ॱ̃ˮ䢲㑰ᔄⳉՉйǙⅮǚⅲ⛪♚䣀ˏ⡅ᒶ₝
cypress in Chinese is also bai ᗭ . The other rebus is the inclusion
ˮⅲᗭ៉䢲ॏǙᗭǚ⧀ǙⅮǚܔ㦈䣁̣⡅ᒶ᪮㢶ॼ
of white deer amongst the brown and russet animals, since the
⽤㶏Ǐ㈠⽤㶏ˮ̃Ⅽ㶏䢲⡊ǙⅭǚ̷チǙⅮǚǐ㦧
word for white in Chinese is bai Ⅽ – another homophone for the
word meaning a hundred. It is also interesting that there are ਴Ἥݣⅲᒶ䢲Ⅾ㶏ബ˖ഹᕖ㢩㢡Ⅽ㶏ᐪ㢙䢲⯯ॏ
several deer with white coats depicted on the vessels – both stags Ⅽ㶏˾૯ܑ̃ԯǐᓇ͞ೀ⡅⮓ᨍ䢮ՌԬ ⦰

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