A fine blue and white 'chrysanthemum' jar, Mark and period of Yongzheng | 清雍正 青花團菊紋罐 《大清雍正年製》款

S. Marchant & Son, London.

馬錢特，倫敦

The Yongzheng Emperor (r. 1723-35) is celebrated for his fine artistic taste, his passion for classic porcelain of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), and the fabulous reproductions of these traditional wares he commissioned. The motifs of the present chrysanthemum jar are reminiscent of Chenghua porcelains, but no exact Chenghua prototype appears to be recorded. Related chrysanthemum roundels are known from Chenghua bowls; see a doucai bowl excavated from the waste heaps of the Ming imperial kilns at Jingdezhen included in Imperial Porcelains from the Reign of Chenghua in the Ming Dynasty: A Comparison of Porcelains from the Imperial Kiln Site at Jingdezhen and Imperial Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2016, vol. II, pl. 155. The pattern on the shoulders is also similar to those on Chenghua jars; see a doucai covered jar with lotus medallions between bands of petals, preserved in the Palace Museum, Beijing, ibid., vol. I, pl. 139.

A slightly larger jar of this design from the Yongzheng period, with its matching cover, in the Palace Museum, Taipei, was included in Special Exhibition of K'ang-hsi, Yung-cheng and Ch'ien-lung porcelain Ware from the Ch'ing Dynasty in the Palace Museum, Taipei, 1986, cat. no. 28, and again in Good Fortune, Long Life, Health, and Peace: A Special Exhibition of Porcelains with Auspicious Designs, Taipei, 1995, cat. no. 90. Another comparable jar, also without a cover, was sold in these rooms, 5th October 2016, lot 3698.

Jars decorated with chrysanthemum medallions are more commonly known painted in the doucai palette; see for example a Yongzheng covered jar with a wider mouth and painted with medallions of two chrysanthemums separated by floral sprays, illustrated in The Tsui Museum of Art. Chinese Ceramics, vol. IV, Hong Kong, 1995, pl. 145; and another sold twice at Christie's Hong Kong, 1st May 1994, lot 692, and 3rd November 1998, lot 957. Compare also a pair of doucai chrysanthemum roundels from the Qianlong period offered in this sale, lot 3639.

Porcelain jars of this form are believed to be tea vessels, possibly used as tea caddies. Comparable jars, together with other tea vessels, are illustrated in three Qing court paintings of the Qianlong Emperor preserved in the Palace Museum, Beijing; The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Paintings by the Court Artists of the Qing Court, Hong Kong, 1996, pls 30-31 and 73.

雍正帝善鑑明辨、審美不凡，在位年間所製御器，素以雅緻靈秀著稱。世宗尚古，青睞明代名瓷，詔命仿學復作，成器端莊秀麗。此團菊罐上紋飾慕古，雖無同式明代雛本對照，但圖案近成化遺風。景德鎮珠山御窰遺址出土鬪彩盌殘件，上繪團菊，雖以四朵為一組，但風格相類，可資參考，圖見《明代成化御窰瓷器：景德鎮御窰遺址出土與故宮博物院藏傳世瓷器對比（下）》，北京，2016年，圖版155。此罐肩上花瓣，也可見於傳世成化瓷罐，如北京故宮所藏鬪彩蓋罐，器肩及足上均繪相近花瓣，見《明代成化御窰瓷器（上）》，出處同上，圖版139。

另參考台北故宮博物院藏同式雍正青花團菊蓋罐，尺寸略大於此，錄於《清康雍乾名瓷特展》，台北，1986年，編號28，並見於《福壽康寧：吉祥圖案瓷器特展圖錄》，台北，1995年，編號90。2016年10月5日香港蘇富比也曾拍出一例，無蓋，編號3698。

清代團菊紋罐，較多以鬪彩作飾，例如《徐氏藝術館．陶瓷篇IV．清代》所載清雍正仿明成化蓋罐，雙菊團紋與折枝蓮花相間，罐口較寬（香港，1995年，圖版145）。該式鬪彩團菊紋罐，也有見於拍賣，如香港佳士得兩度售出之例，分別為1994年5月1日，編號692，及1998年11月3日，編號957。本場拍賣也有一對乾隆鬪彩團菊紋蓋罐，然圖案與此器異，拍品編號3639。

此類罐子，應與茶事相關，或為藏儲茶葉之用。北京故宮博物院藏《乾隆歲朝圖》及兩軸《乾隆雪景行樂圖》中，高宗旁邊木架均放有各式茶具，當中見有相類罐子，圖見《故宮博物院藏文物珍品全集．清代宮廷繪畫》，香港，1996年，圖版30-31及73。