2nd Jun, 2023 11:00

Fine Chinese Art / 中國藝術集珍 / Buddhism & Hinduism

 
Lot 77
 

77

A RARE WUCAI ‘MONTH’ CUP, KANGXI MARK AND PERIOD
康熙款五彩桃花花神杯

Sold for €58,500

including Buyer's Premium


Lot details

China, 1662-1722. Delicately potted with deep rounded sides rising from a short foot to a flared rim, superbly enameled around the exterior with a red-flowering peach tree with small blossoms among scant leaves, representing the third month, the reverse inscribed in underglaze blue with a poem followed by a seal mark, the recessed base with an underglaze-blue six-character mark da Qing Kangxi nianzhi and of the period.

Inscriptions: To one side, ‘Fenghua xinshe yan / shijie jiuchun nong’ (The swallow returns when the blossoms sway in the breeze / It is the season in late spring when farmers return to their fields). One seal, ‘Shang’ (appreciation).

Provenance: From the collection of Carl Gustav Kjellin, acquired in Shanghai during the 1940s, and thence by descent in the family. Carl Gustav Kjellin (1910-1990) was a Swedish diplomat who was stationed in China until 1945 and thereafter at the Swedish embassy in Tokyo. He acquired most of his collection of Chinese porcelain and works of art during his time in Asia.
Condition:
Perfect condition with only minor wear. Minimal firing irregularities, including a microscopic glaze blister of less than 2 mm to the rim.

Weight: 28.5 g
Dimensions: Diameter 6.5 cm

This finely potted cup is one of the so-called ‘month cups’, made at the imperial kilns during the Kangxi reign. One was made for each month of the lunar calendar. As in the case of the current example, these cups are so thinly potted that the blue of the inscription on the exterior can be seen through the porcelain from the interior of the vessel. Their decoration is characterized by very delicately painted decoration in underglaze blue and wucai enamels. Each of the cups has on one side a floral design appropriate to a particular month, and on the other side a poem which complements the design. Each of the cups also bears an underglaze blue seal character after the poem, which can be read as ‘shang’ (appreciation).

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related cup included in the Oriental Ceramic Society exhibition Enamelled Polychrome Porcelain of the Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912), London, 1951, cat. no. 253. The Percival David Foundation in London has one of the few complete sets of cups for all twelve months, now in the collection of the British Museum, registration number PDF.815. The design on the current cup is very similar to the third month cup in the Percival David Foundation and bears the same poem, see Rosemary Scott, For the Imperial Court - Qing Porcelain from the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, New York, 1997, pp. 82-83, no. 23. The Palace Museum, Bejing owns at least two sets, illustrated in Chugoku toji zenshu (Complete works on Chinese ceramics), Kyoto, 1981-86, vol. 21, pl. 61, and in Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong - Qing Porcelain from the Palace Museum Collection, Hong Kong, 1989, page 65, no. 48. One is in the Idemitsu Museum of Art, Tokyo, illustrated in Idemitsu Bijutsukan zohin zuroku, Chugoku toji (Chinese Ceramics in the Idemitsu Collection), Tokyo, 1987, pl. 221. One set in the Hong Kong Museum of Art was included in the exhibition ‘The Wonders of the Potter’s Palette’, Qing Ceramics from the Collection of the Hong Kong Museum of Art, 1984-5, cat. no. 15.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Near identical
Auction: Sotheby’s London, 6 November 2019, lot 149
Price: GBP 112,500 or approx. EUR 149,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare wucai ‘month’ cup, Kangxi mark and period
Expert remark: Compare the near identical form, decoration, enamels, and size (6.5 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Near identical
Auction: Christie’s Hong Kong, 29 May 2013, lot 1911
Price: HKD 2,670,000 or approx. EUR 393,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A fine famille verte ‘peach blossom’ cup, Kangxi six-character mark within double-circles and of the period
Expert remark: Compare the near identical form, decoration, enamels, and size (6.5 cm). Note that the enamels on this month cup are described as ‘famille verte’. It appears that for these month cups, the terms ‘famille verte’ and ‘wucai’ are interchangeable, however to this author, the term ‘wucai’ seems more accurate due to the presence of underglaze-blue decoration.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 3 April 2012, lot 45
Estimate: HKD 18,000,000 or approx. EUR 2,756,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An extremely rare set of twelve wucai ‘month’ cups, marks and period of Kangxi
Expert remark: Note that this lot comprises a complete set of twelve wucai month cups, the third month cup being near identical to the present lot.



康熙款五彩桃花花神杯
中國,1662-1722年。撇口、深腹、淺圈足、胎體輕薄、器型精巧絕倫,造型規整優美,胎質乳白、器薄如紙、晶瑩剔透;外壁用一年十二個月中的三月桃花來裝飾,並配以相應的詩句。圈足青花“大清康熙年製”六字款。

款識:風花新社鷰,時節舊春農;印:賞

來源:Carl Gustav Kjellin私人收藏,購於上世紀四十年代,之後在同一家族保存至今。Carl Gustav Kjellin (1910-1990) 是一名瑞典外交官,1945 年之前出使中國,此後在瑞典駐東京大使館工作。他收藏的大部分中國瓷器和藝術品都是在亞洲期間獲得的。
品相:
狀況完美,只有輕微磨損。燒製不規則性,如邊緣小於 2 毫米的微觀釉泡。

重量:28.5 克
尺寸:直徑 6.5 厘米

康熙十二花卉杯上的花卉以水仙花開始,然後以此為迎春花、桃花、牡丹花、石榴花、荷花、蘭花、桂花、菊花、芙蓉花、月季花和梅花,一杯一花,腹壁一面繪畫,另一面題詩,詩句出自唐詩。每隻杯上繪一種應時花卉,指代歷史上的著名女性,併題上相應的詩句,慣稱“十二月花神杯”。

文獻比較:
比較一件非常相近的花卉杯,收藏於東方陶瓷學會,展覽於 《Enamelled Polychrome Porcelain of the Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912)》,倫敦,1951年,圖錄編號253。倫敦的Percival David基金會擁有為數不多的整套十二花神杯之一,現藏於大英博物館,圖錄編號 PDF.815。收藏於Percival David基金會的第三個月花神杯,有相似的設計和相同的詩句,見Rosemary Scott,《For the Imperial Court - Qing Porcelain from the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art》,紐約,1997,頁82-83,編號23。北京故宮博物院擁有兩套十二花神杯,見《中國瓷器全集》,京都,1981-86年,卷21,圖61,和《故宮珍藏康雍乾瓷器圖錄》,香港,1989年,頁65,編號48。一套收藏於東京出光美術館,出版於《出光美術館藏品圖錄:中國陶瓷》,東京,1987年,圖221。一套在香港藝術博物館,展覽於《香港藝術館藏清代陶瓷:清瓷薈錦》,1984-5年,圖錄編號15。

拍賣結果比較:
形制:幾乎相同
拍賣:倫敦蘇富比,2019年11月6日,lot 149
價格:GBP 112,500(相當於今日EUR 149,000
描述:清康熙五彩桃花花神杯 《大清康熙年製》款
專家評論:比較幾乎相同的外形、裝飾、琺瑯和尺寸 (6.5 厘米)。

拍賣結果比較:
形制:幾乎相同
拍賣:香港佳士得,2013年5月29日,lot 1911
價格:HKD 2,670,000(相當於今日EUR 393,000
描述:清康熙五彩「桃花」花神盃,雙圈六字楷書款
專家評論:比較幾乎相同的外形、裝飾、琺瑯,和尺寸 (6.5 厘米)。請注意,這件花神月杯上的琺瑯被描述為“粉彩”和“五彩”似乎可以互換使用,但在筆者看來,由於飾有青花釉,因此描述為“五彩”似乎更為準確。

拍賣結果比較:
形制:非常相近
拍賣:香港蘇富比,2012年4月3日,lot 45
估價:HKD 18,000,000(相當於今日EUR 2,756,000
描述:康熙款及年代五彩十二花神杯
專家評論:請注意此組為完整的五彩十二花神杯,第三個月的花神杯和我們的拍品幾乎相同。

#byimperialcommand

 

China, 1662-1722. Delicately potted with deep rounded sides rising from a short foot to a flared rim, superbly enameled around the exterior with a red-flowering peach tree with small blossoms among scant leaves, representing the third month, the reverse inscribed in underglaze blue with a poem followed by a seal mark, the recessed base with an underglaze-blue six-character mark da Qing Kangxi nianzhi and of the period.

Inscriptions: To one side, ‘Fenghua xinshe yan / shijie jiuchun nong’ (The swallow returns when the blossoms sway in the breeze / It is the season in late spring when farmers return to their fields). One seal, ‘Shang’ (appreciation).

Provenance: From the collection of Carl Gustav Kjellin, acquired in Shanghai during the 1940s, and thence by descent in the family. Carl Gustav Kjellin (1910-1990) was a Swedish diplomat who was stationed in China until 1945 and thereafter at the Swedish embassy in Tokyo. He acquired most of his collection of Chinese porcelain and works of art during his time in Asia.
Condition:
Perfect condition with only minor wear. Minimal firing irregularities, including a microscopic glaze blister of less than 2 mm to the rim.

Weight: 28.5 g
Dimensions: Diameter 6.5 cm

This finely potted cup is one of the so-called ‘month cups’, made at the imperial kilns during the Kangxi reign. One was made for each month of the lunar calendar. As in the case of the current example, these cups are so thinly potted that the blue of the inscription on the exterior can be seen through the porcelain from the interior of the vessel. Their decoration is characterized by very delicately painted decoration in underglaze blue and wucai enamels. Each of the cups has on one side a floral design appropriate to a particular month, and on the other side a poem which complements the design. Each of the cups also bears an underglaze blue seal character after the poem, which can be read as ‘shang’ (appreciation).

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related cup included in the Oriental Ceramic Society exhibition Enamelled Polychrome Porcelain of the Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912), London, 1951, cat. no. 253. The Percival David Foundation in London has one of the few complete sets of cups for all twelve months, now in the collection of the British Museum, registration number PDF.815. The design on the current cup is very similar to the third month cup in the Percival David Foundation and bears the same poem, see Rosemary Scott, For the Imperial Court - Qing Porcelain from the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, New York, 1997, pp. 82-83, no. 23. The Palace Museum, Bejing owns at least two sets, illustrated in Chugoku toji zenshu (Complete works on Chinese ceramics), Kyoto, 1981-86, vol. 21, pl. 61, and in Kangxi, Yongzheng, Qianlong - Qing Porcelain from the Palace Museum Collection, Hong Kong, 1989, page 65, no. 48. One is in the Idemitsu Museum of Art, Tokyo, illustrated in Idemitsu Bijutsukan zohin zuroku, Chugoku toji (Chinese Ceramics in the Idemitsu Collection), Tokyo, 1987, pl. 221. One set in the Hong Kong Museum of Art was included in the exhibition ‘The Wonders of the Potter’s Palette’, Qing Ceramics from the Collection of the Hong Kong Museum of Art, 1984-5, cat. no. 15.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Near identical
Auction: Sotheby’s London, 6 November 2019, lot 149
Price: GBP 112,500 or approx. EUR 149,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare wucai ‘month’ cup, Kangxi mark and period
Expert remark: Compare the near identical form, decoration, enamels, and size (6.5 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Near identical
Auction: Christie’s Hong Kong, 29 May 2013, lot 1911
Price: HKD 2,670,000 or approx. EUR 393,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A fine famille verte ‘peach blossom’ cup, Kangxi six-character mark within double-circles and of the period
Expert remark: Compare the near identical form, decoration, enamels, and size (6.5 cm). Note that the enamels on this month cup are described as ‘famille verte’. It appears that for these month cups, the terms ‘famille verte’ and ‘wucai’ are interchangeable, however to this author, the term ‘wucai’ seems more accurate due to the presence of underglaze-blue decoration.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 3 April 2012, lot 45
Estimate: HKD 18,000,000 or approx. EUR 2,756,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An extremely rare set of twelve wucai ‘month’ cups, marks and period of Kangxi
Expert remark: Note that this lot comprises a complete set of twelve wucai month cups, the third month cup being near identical to the present lot.



康熙款五彩桃花花神杯
中國,1662-1722年。撇口、深腹、淺圈足、胎體輕薄、器型精巧絕倫,造型規整優美,胎質乳白、器薄如紙、晶瑩剔透;外壁用一年十二個月中的三月桃花來裝飾,並配以相應的詩句。圈足青花“大清康熙年製”六字款。

款識:風花新社鷰,時節舊春農;印:賞

來源:Carl Gustav Kjellin私人收藏,購於上世紀四十年代,之後在同一家族保存至今。Carl Gustav Kjellin (1910-1990) 是一名瑞典外交官,1945 年之前出使中國,此後在瑞典駐東京大使館工作。他收藏的大部分中國瓷器和藝術品都是在亞洲期間獲得的。
品相:
狀況完美,只有輕微磨損。燒製不規則性,如邊緣小於 2 毫米的微觀釉泡。

重量:28.5 克
尺寸:直徑 6.5 厘米

康熙十二花卉杯上的花卉以水仙花開始,然後以此為迎春花、桃花、牡丹花、石榴花、荷花、蘭花、桂花、菊花、芙蓉花、月季花和梅花,一杯一花,腹壁一面繪畫,另一面題詩,詩句出自唐詩。每隻杯上繪一種應時花卉,指代歷史上的著名女性,併題上相應的詩句,慣稱“十二月花神杯”。

文獻比較:
比較一件非常相近的花卉杯,收藏於東方陶瓷學會,展覽於 《Enamelled Polychrome Porcelain of the Manchu Dynasty (1644-1912)》,倫敦,1951年,圖錄編號253。倫敦的Percival David基金會擁有為數不多的整套十二花神杯之一,現藏於大英博物館,圖錄編號 PDF.815。收藏於Percival David基金會的第三個月花神杯,有相似的設計和相同的詩句,見Rosemary Scott,《For the Imperial Court - Qing Porcelain from the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art》,紐約,1997,頁82-83,編號23。北京故宮博物院擁有兩套十二花神杯,見《中國瓷器全集》,京都,1981-86年,卷21,圖61,和《故宮珍藏康雍乾瓷器圖錄》,香港,1989年,頁65,編號48。一套收藏於東京出光美術館,出版於《出光美術館藏品圖錄:中國陶瓷》,東京,1987年,圖221。一套在香港藝術博物館,展覽於《香港藝術館藏清代陶瓷:清瓷薈錦》,1984-5年,圖錄編號15。

拍賣結果比較:
形制:幾乎相同
拍賣:倫敦蘇富比,2019年11月6日,lot 149
價格:GBP 112,500(相當於今日EUR 149,000
描述:清康熙五彩桃花花神杯 《大清康熙年製》款
專家評論:比較幾乎相同的外形、裝飾、琺瑯和尺寸 (6.5 厘米)。

拍賣結果比較:
形制:幾乎相同
拍賣:香港佳士得,2013年5月29日,lot 1911
價格:HKD 2,670,000(相當於今日EUR 393,000
描述:清康熙五彩「桃花」花神盃,雙圈六字楷書款
專家評論:比較幾乎相同的外形、裝飾、琺瑯,和尺寸 (6.5 厘米)。請注意,這件花神月杯上的琺瑯被描述為“粉彩”和“五彩”似乎可以互換使用,但在筆者看來,由於飾有青花釉,因此描述為“五彩”似乎更為準確。

拍賣結果比較:
形制:非常相近
拍賣:香港蘇富比,2012年4月3日,lot 45
估價:HKD 18,000,000(相當於今日EUR 2,756,000
描述:康熙款及年代五彩十二花神杯
專家評論:請注意此組為完整的五彩十二花神杯,第三個月的花神杯和我們的拍品幾乎相同。

#byimperialcommand

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