REFINED SPLENDOUR THE SI YUE TANG COLLECTION OF YUAN, MING AND QING PORCELAINS

5331 | Kangxi period, Qing dynasty A DOUCAI ‘PHOENIX AND BAMBOO’ TEABOWL

A DOUCAI ‘PHOENIX AND BAMBOO’ TEABOWL

Author: --

Size: D9.5cm

Signed and dated: Kangxi period, Qing dynasty

Estimate:

Final Price: RMB 200,000


Yucichunyitangzhi Five-Character Mark
PROVENANCE
· The Si Yue Tang Collection
REFERENCE
· Qing porcelains from the Palace Museum Collection Selected by Type, vol. 1: Blue-and-white porcelain of the Shunzhi and Kangxi reigns of the Qing, Beijing, 2005, pp.212,213 pl. 131
· Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Porcelains in Wucai and Doucai, Shanghai, 2007, pp. 217 cat. no. 198.3
The small bowl is of conical form, enameled with phoenix and bamboo, the decoration continuing over the rim into the interior, the base with ‘Yuci Chuiyitang’ five characters mark in underglaze blue square. ‘Chuiyitang (Chuiyi Hall)’ was the hall name of Langtingji given by the Kangxi Emperor in 1707 according to the Jiangxi Local Records, thus the mark indicates the consignment production by Langtingji during the 44-51 year of the Kangxi reign (1705 - 1712). Similar examples can be found in the Palace Museum in Beijing.

The Si Yue Tang Collection of Yuan,
Ming and Qing Porcelains
Si Yue Tang is a Hong Kong Collection of fine porcelains assembled over a period of 30 some years. It holds onto the very important principle of “finess, authenticity and briskness” which have been observed by our forefathers in the circle of serious collectors. It is important to ensure that this proud tradition of our fatherland would be continued ad infinitum either through this Tang’s custody or through the passing-on of some of its collection to other devoted collectors.
This Tang’s identity has previously been kept at a low profile as its owner chose to assemble his collection discreetly until such time as both the quality and the quantity had reached a considerably high level. Its contents include monochromes, polychromes and blue-and-white wares, which form the three pillars of our porcelain industry. Strictly speaking, porcelains originated in the Yüan Dynasty as the mineral “kaolin”, an essential ingredient of porcelain, was first employed then. This collection differs from many others in that great emphasis has been placed on a particular or unique feature of every piece. To anyone who is only vaguely familiar with Chinese culture, such a feature might not strike any particular chord but to those who have some profound knowledge and feeling for Chinese culture, a sense of belonging and depth of the Chinese heritage would immediately emerge. For example, a sacrificial blue cup-stand bearing a mark 「Ze Bai Si Nan」, taken from the 「Shi Jing, Da Ya, Si Qi」 , brings out the virtues of the mother of King Wen of the Zhou Dynasty, which is an example expected to be followed by all good housewives.
Furthermore, this mark has been identified by experts, together with「Yang He Tang」 and「Yu Yan Shu Wu」, as an exclusive ware for the imperial household at the 「Yuan Ming Yuan」 in the eighteenth century. Understandably, these three marks are extremely rare and very meaningful indeed for porcelain collectors.
On the subject of reignmarks, the rarest ones in the Ming Dynasty are Yongle, Chenghua and Longqing. The first two are so scarce and sought after that whenever one appears very, very occasionally, it could fetch over 10 million Yuan easily. The Yongle reignmark is prized for its simplicity, Chenghua for its strength and agility and Longqing for its unpretentiousness and down to earth strokes. This auction offers a pair of Longqing dishes with a blue-and-white design and a corresponding reignmark.
Wares of the Yongzheng and Qianlong reigns are much prized today. Included in this auction are two imitation lacquer objects (but are actually porcelains) of the eighteenth century. There is one fine piece of famille rose bowl depicting a climber plant drooping from the inside of the object across its rim to the outside. This piece was acquired from the world-famous fine art dealer “Giuseppe Eskenazi” at his gallery in London. There are two lots of the eighteenth century bearing the mark “Jing Wei Tang”, one of them with a celadon glaze. The celadon glaze was praised by Xu Zhi Heng in his “Yin Liu Ji Shuo Ci” for its bright and charming glaze.
As for blue-and-white ware, a Jiajing bowl with the mark “Jin Fu Shang Yong” is notable for its original owner, a nobility in the Province of Shanxi some 480 years ago. There is a piece of late Ming washer giving the exact date and the occasion for its production. In addition, there are several blue-and-white pieces of the Yongzheng and Qianlong reigns of the Qing Dynasty.
Objects included in this special sale have been chosen carefully and with a special theme covering the Yüan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. There is a good range of fine porcelains for collectors to choose from. It is hoped that some of the most representative pieces of imperial porcelain in the Si Yue Tang Collection would be passed on to other fervent collectors, from which its current owner would derive gratification and comfort of mind.
Owner of the Si Yue Tang Collection
25th April, 2019.