A pair of fine blue and white 'dragon' bowls, Marks and period of Yongzheng | 清雍正 青花雲龍紋盌一對 《大清雍正年製》款

Sotheby's Hong Kong, 14th November 1989, lot 87.

香港蘇富比1989年11月14日，編號87

The current pair of bowls exemplifies the Yongzheng Emperor's admiration for celebrated Chinese ceramics and antiquity as well as his desire to uphold such traditions. Decorated in rich cobalt-blue tones against a plain white ground in a Ming dynasty fashion, the dragons call to mind a motif that gained popularity from the early Ming dynasty, which can be seen decorated on bowls of virtually every period since the reign of Chenghua. Compare three related examples from the Chenghua, Hongzhi and Wanli reigns in the collection of the Shanghai Museum, included in Lu Minghua, Mingdai guanyao ciqi [Ming imperial porcelain], Shanghai, 2007, pls 1-84, 3-61 and 3-69.

Bowls of this type, powerfully portrayed with Ming-style dragons, were produced in pairs. Compare three related pairs, sold in these rooms, 2nd May 1995, lot 66, 29th April 1997, lot 614, and 8th October 2019, lot 3111, respectively. That this motif was highly favoured by the Yongzheng Emperor can be seen in the commissioning of ogee bowls painted with very similar motifs, such as a pair included in the exhibition Ch'ing Porcelain from the Wah Kwong Collection, Art Gallery, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1973, cat. no. 59; and another pair sold in these rooms, 3rd October 2018, lot 145, from the collection of Sir Quo-Wei Lee.

雍正皇帝慕古好雅，延前代瓷風，續製青花龍紋盌。龍紋，自古已有，但明初始更盛行，對盌青花發色濃艷，與白地對比鮮明，極富前朝遺風。青花雙龍紋，明初已甚風行，後來幾乎每朝皆有製同紋瓷盌。參考上海博物館藏成化、弘治、萬曆青花雙龍紋盌，載於陸明華，《明代官窰瓷器》，上海，2007年，圖版1-84、3-61及3-69。

此類青花盌，盡致詮釋明式龍紋，成對燒造。比較三對相似盌例，分別售於香港蘇富比1995年5月2日，編號66、1997年4月29日，編號614及2019年10月8日，編號3111。雍正皇帝想必對此龍紋甚為鍾愛，時也有製相類折腰盌。參考一例，載於《華光艸堂珍藏清代瓷器》，香港中文大學文物館，香港，1973年，編號59。另一對為利國偉爵士舊藏，售於香港蘇富比，2018年10月3日，編號145。