83
A RARE AND LARGE BLUE AND WHITE 'LOTUS BOUQUET' CHARGER, China, Ming dynasty, Yongle period (1402-1424)
d cm 42,5
The rounded sides rise from a tapered foot to a slightly everted rim. The centre is painted in vivid shades of cobalt blue with a lotus bouquet composed of slender stems, arrowhead-shaped leaves, aquatic plants and millet, all tied together with a ribbon. The inner rim is decorated with a continuous floral scroll combining camellias, chrysanthemums, lotus flowers and peonies, beneath a band of classical scrolls. The exterior features a similar floral scroll decoration, bordered above by a Greek key band and below by a band of classical scrolls. The unglazed base reveals the white porcelain body.
明永乐 青花一把莲大盘
来源：意大利私人收藏
Provenance:
Private collection, Italy.
Catalogue Notes:
Large blue and white chargers of this form and decoration represent one of the most classical ornamental repertoires of the Yongle period. The 'lotus bouquet' motif, with its unusual combination of lotus flowers and leaves and aquatic plants tied together with a ribbon, evokes lotus ponds in full bloom during the summer, when their colours are particularly vivid. Decorations of this type were often produced with slight variations in the border band, which could feature waves, classical scrolls or Greek key patterns. These dishes, or large serving chargers, were widely distributed and extensively exported to the Middle East as trade routes expanded during the Yongle reign, as evidenced by the abundance of comparable examples in Middle Eastern collections.
See a very similar, but smaller dish in the collection of the National Palace Museum in Taipei, inventory no. 故瓷001268N000000000 (link). See also the dish in the collection of the Hong Kong Palace Museum, inventory no. 2022.319 (link). A similar dish is also illustrated in John Alexander Pope, Chinese Porcelains from the Ardebil Shrine, Washington, 1956, plate 30, no. 29.21.
A smaller similar dish was sold at Sotheby's, Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, 9 November 2011, London, lot 148 (link).
Large dishes of this size bearing this pattern are extremely rare. See a similar, slightly smaller example with a wavy inner border in the collection of the Art Gallery of New South Wales in Sydney, inventory no. 575.1993 (link), and another sold at Sotheby's, A Journey Through China's History. The Dr Wou Kiuan Collection Part 1, 22 March 2022, New York, lot 11 (link).
明永乐 青花一把莲大盘
来源：意大利私人收藏
图录注释：此类造型和装饰的大型青花瓷盘是永乐时期最经典的装饰风格之一。 “内心绘经典“一把莲”（一束莲），内壁环绕缠枝花卉，外壁同样绘缠枝莲纹。一把莲寓意清廉、一品清廉。这类大盘子随着永乐年间贸易路线的拓展而广泛流传，并大量出口到中东，中东藏品中大量同类器物便是明证。
台北故宫博物院藏有一件非常相似但尺寸较小的盘子，藏品编号：故瓷001268N000000000（链接）。香港故宫博物院藏有一件，藏品编号：2022.319（链接）。约翰·亚历山大·波普（John Alexander Pope）所著《阿达比勒神殿出土的中国瓷器》（Chinese Porcelains from the Ardebil Shrine，华盛顿，1956年）第30页也收录了一件类似的盘子。 29.21.
一件尺寸较小的类似瓷盘曾于2011年11月9日在伦敦苏富比“中国瓷器及艺术品”专场拍卖会上售出，拍品编号148（链接）。
€ 1.000,00 / 2.000,00
Estimate
€ 1.000,00
Starting price