Cup with landscape

Polychrome falangcai overglaze enamel-(what used to be called -Ku-yueh Hsuan type in the early 20th century).
Bowl: small with high sides. Carved ivory stand.
Body: fine grained white porcelain.
Glaze: transparent, glossy.
Decoration: a landscape scene in overglaze blue enamel; inscription of seven characters; seal simulated in red enamel; four character mark of the Yongzheng period in pale blue enamel on base.

Historical period(s)
Qing dynasty, Yongzheng reign mark and period, circa 1732
Medium
Porcelain with colorless glaze and blue, black, and ruby enamels over the glaze
Style
falangcai style painting on Jingdezhen porcelain body
Dimensions
H x Diam: 5.1 × 10.2 cm (2 × 4 in)
Geography
China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Accession Number
F1932.63a-g
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Cup

Keywords
boat, China, falangcai, fungus-of-immortality, Guyuexuan ware, landscape, poems, porcelain, Qing dynasty (1644 - 1911), willow tree
Provenance

To 1932
Yamanaka & Co., New York. [1]

From 1932
Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Yamanaka & Co., New York. [2]

Notes:

[1] Curatorial Remark 1 in the object record.

[2] See Note 1.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Yamanaka and Co. 1917-1965

Description

Polychrome falangcai overglaze enamel-(what used to be called -Ku-yueh Hsuan type in the early 20th century).
Bowl: small with high sides. Carved ivory stand.
Body: fine grained white porcelain.
Glaze: transparent, glossy.
Decoration: a landscape scene in overglaze blue enamel; inscription of seven characters; seal simulated in red enamel; four character mark of the Yongzheng period in pale blue enamel on base.

Inscription(s)

The inscription may be translated "The kingfishers in the region of Nan Shan are the same color." This refers, no doubt, to the fact that the landscape scene is drawn entirely in blue enamels of those shades known to the Chinese as "kingfisher blue," ts'ui lan, [chn]. The imitation seal reads shou-ju [chn].

Marking(s)

Yongzheng nianzhi (Made in the reign of Yongzheng) on base: and a red seal "shouru" by the poem.

Label

The monochrome palette of this landscape complements the accompanying poem: <i>Blue-green wraps around South Mountain--merging into one color .<i>  After a blue enamel color was perfected in the early eighteenth century, porcelain decorators enjoyed using it to create monochrome designs analogous to scroll painting, in which ink alone expresses a range of landscape colors.  The artist who painted this cup varied the thickness of the enamel to achieve effects of shading.

Published References
  • Oriental Ceramics: The World's Great Collections. 12 vols., Tokyo. vol. 10, pl. 123.
  • Else S. Duncan. The Collector's First Handbook on Antique Chinese Ceramics. Chevy Chase. pl. 3.
  • The Imperial Sale (Christie's, Hong Kong). Hong Kong, April 26, 2004. lot 935.
  • F. St. G. Spendlove. Ku Yueh Hsuan Imperial Porcelain. vol. 10, no. 5 New York, October 1938. p. 16.
  • Jan Stuart. Unified Style in Chinese Painting and Porcelain in the 18th Century. vol. 41, no. 2, Summer 1995. p. 43, fig. 16.
  • B. A. Devere Bailey. The Old Moon Pavilion Ware. vol. 67, no. 393 London, December 1935. p. 270, pl. 2 D.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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