A MASSIVE 'DOUCAI' 'DRAGON' DISH QING DYNASTY, KANGXI PERIOD

the gently curved sides rising from a short tapering foot to an everted rim, brightly painted and enamelled to the interior with a medallion enclosing a large scaly dragon grasping a 'pearl of wisdom' emblazoned with a shou character, encircled by nine large carp leaping from tumultuous foaming waves, the exterior with a band of foaming waves, the base with apocryphal six-character Chenghua mark within a circle

This large and impressive charger is in very good overall condition with the exception of fritting to the majority of the rim, some minor firing imperfections including iron-spot glaze imperfections, a 4mm., diam., glaze hole to the interior, small glaze pulls to the interior, pinhead-sized glaze holes and light glaze scratches.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This impressive dish is rare for its idiosyncratic depiction of the shou medallion that is gripped within the five claws of the dragon, and for the dense and dynamic composition that radiates from the centre. Although smaller dishes decorated with a similar subject are known, the dragon is generally depicted with arms wide open and encircled by four or five fish leaping through a single row of stylised waves; such as the pair included in the Hong Kong Oriental Ceramics Society exhibition Ch'ing Polychrome Porcelain, Fung Ping Shan Museum, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1977, cat. no. 52; one sold in these rooms, 14^th July 1981, lot 127; another sold in our New York rooms, 24^th June 1981, lot 388; and a blue and white version sold in these rooms, 18th June 1985, lot 206.

The present dish is inspired by contemporaneous blue and white porcelain; see a dish decorated with a central dragon and nine fish around the well, all on a pencilled wave ground of stylised waves, offered in our Hong Kong rooms, 19^th May 1977, lot 544; and a dish with a closely related dragon holding a shou medallion, surrounded by four further dragons and a crashing waves rim, sold in these rooms, 18th November 1998, lot 1011.

The carp is associated with motifs for passing the civil service examinations. According to traditional belief, carp swimming upstream in the Yellow River must leap the rapids of Dragon's Gate, and the first to successfully do so is transformed into a dragon. This legend is a metaphor for a poor young scholar who passes the civil service exams to become a high official, and was a favourite motif of the Kangxi emperor, who had a keen interest in learning and reorganised the Academy to allow such young talents the opportunity to sit the exams. Versions of this motif is found on various vessels from the Kangxi period; see a shallow blue and white basin painted with a dragon and two fish, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Chen Runmin, Qing Shunzhi Kangxi qiao qinghua ci, Beijing, 2005, pl. 174.