A RARE LARGE CELADON-GLAZED JARDINIERE IN THE SHAPE OF A DOUBLE-LOTUS LEAF, YONGZHENG SEAL MARK AND PERIOD | 清雍正 粉青釉荷葉式花盆 《大清雍正年製》款

This jardinière is remarkable in its refinement and must have been created under the tenure of Tang Ying (1682-1756), who served the Yongzheng and Qianlong (r. 1736-1795) emperors as supervisor of the Qing imperial kilns at Jingdezhen from 1726 until his death. Modelled naturalistically in the form of an open lotus flower, this piece was a technical tour de force that would have required the utmost attention at every stage of its production; its irregular shape and large size would have been particularly challenging to glaze and fire successfully and any imperfection would have resulted in the rejection and subsequent destruction of the piece.

This piece appears to be unique and was probably made upon a specific order. Its inspiration may have come from Northern Song dynasty (960-1127) censers in the form of lotus flowers. One such censer has been recovered from the Ru manufactories at Qingliangsi, Baofeng, Henan province, and illustrated in Grand View: Special Exhibition of Ju Ware from the Northern Sung Dynasty, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 2006, cat. no. 19. Porcelain ware in the form of lotus flowers were also made in the early Ming dynasty (1368-1644), such as the white-glazed stand unearthed from the Yongle (r. 1403-1424) strata at the site of the imperial porcelain kiln factory in Jingdezhen and illustrated in Imperial Porcelains from the Reigns of Hongwu and Yongle in the Ming dynasty, Beijing, 2015, pl. 129.

Porcelain vessels delicately modelled in the form of flowers or leaves were popular in the early Qing dynasty, although these are generally small-scale items for the scholar’s desk. See for example a waterpot similarly modelled as a flower and leaf, but with a Qianlong mark and of the period, in the Nanjing Museum, included in the exhibition Treasures in the Royalty. The Official Kiln Porcelain of the Chinese Qing Dynasty, Shanghai, 2003, cat. no. 343.

The naturalistic rendering of the petals and leaves of this jardinière, and the soft tone of the celadon glaze endows this piece with a sense of serenity and modesty, which are well suited to its subject matter. The lotus, hehua or lianhua in Chinese, is closely associated with Buddhism, and represents qualities such as purity, integrity and spiritual awakening. The flower rises undefiled from impure muddy waters, symbolising the power of the soul to emerge from the physical world, samsara, and achieve enlightenment.     

本花盆典雅秀麗，相信乃出自清代著名督陶官唐英，唐英於雍正及乾隆年間任職於景德鎮，直至1726年逝世前爲止。本花盆呈荷葉造型，形狀不規則而尺寸龐大，製作難度極高，窰燒時稍有不穩，即前功盡棄。

本盆疑為孤品，相信乃特定燒製，或按北宋蓮花形香爐為靈感，後者可比較河南寶豐清涼寺汝官窰址，圖載於《大觀：北宋汝窯特展圖錄》，故宮博物院，台北，2006年，編號19。蓮花形之瓷器，亦見於早明，比較一白釉例，出土自景德鎮御窰永樂層，載於《明代洪武永樂御窰瓷器》，北京，2015年，圖版 129。

花或葉形之瓷器，流行於清初，唯多屬小巧文士珍玩。比較一水丞例，乾隆年器並款，現藏於南京博物院，曾展於《宮廷珍藏：中國清代官窰瓷器》，上海，2003年，編號343。

本品蓮瓣及蓮葉刻劃風格自然，粉青釉淡雅，氣韻安謐，切合蓮花主題。蓮花常見於佛教題材，象徵高潔，出污泥而不染，比喻超脫超脫輪迴，得道成佛。