A large blue and white 'four seasons' bowl, Mark and period of Jiajing | 明嘉靖 青花「福壽安康」大盌 《大明嘉靖年製》款

Collection of Sir Quo-Wei Lee (1918-2013)

Sotheby's Hong Kong, 27 November 2019, lot 64.

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利國偉爵士雅藏 (1918-2013)

香港蘇富比，2019年11月27日，編號64

With straight rounded sides rising from a gently tapered foot, this large blue and white bowl is masterfully painted with four twisted and ancient trees—bamboo, prunus, pine, and chrysanthemum—each with a gnarled trunk contorted to form one of the characters fu (福), shou (壽), an (安), and kang (康), conveying the auspicious message of happiness, longevity, peace, and health. The intelligent integration of calligraphic and pictorial elements reflects the Jiajing court’s fondness for Daoist-infused symbolism, rebus imagery, and visual wit.

Compare a similar Jiajing-marked bowl of this rare design illustrated in John Alexander Pope, Chinese Porcelains from the Ardebil Shrine, Washington D.C., 1981, pl. 80, cat. no. 29.364; and a related interpretation of the motif—though bearing a Xuande mark— published in Regina Krahl and John Ayers, Chinese Ceramics in the Topkapi Saray Museum, Istanbul, vol. II, London, 1986, p. 634, no. 937.

本品大碗器形端莊，敞口微弧，弧壁挺立，下承漸收圈足。外壁以青花精繪四株古木，分別為竹、梅、松與菊，各枝幹虯曲盤旋，巧妙構成「福」、「壽」、「安」、「康」四字，寓意吉祥美滿，福壽安康。此類將書法文字與寫意植物合為一體之構圖，體現嘉靖宮廷對道教哲思、象徵語彙與視覺遊戲的高度興趣與審美追求。

一件具類似構圖之嘉靖年款大碗，見 John Alexander Pope 編著《Chinese Porcelains from the Ardebil Shrine》，第二版，華盛頓 D.C.，1981年，圖版80，藏品編號29.364，證其御製性質與儀典用途。另見一件宣德款之相關例，收錄於 Regina Krahl 與 John Ayers 合編《伊斯坦堡托普卡比宮中國瓷器：元與明瓷》，卷二，倫敦，1986年，編號937，頁634。