A fine pair of doucai 'chrysanthemum' cups, Marks and period of Yongzheng | 清雍正 鬪彩團菊紋盃一對 《大清雍正年製》款

Meticulously painted with roundels of chrysanthemum flowers separated by lotus sprays, this charming pair of cups testify to the Yongzheng Emperor’s penchant for classic styles of the past. Each cup's fine and thinly potted body, smooth and tactile glaze, and delicate motif were inspired by prototypes of the Chenghua reign, which the Yongzheng Emperor especially treasured. Compare a Chenghua mark and period reconstructed cup with roundels of chrysanthemums, recovered from the Chenghua stratum at the site of the imperial kiln factory in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, and illustrated in Imperial porcelains from the Reign of Chenghua in the Ming Dynasty II, Beijing, 2016, pl. 179.7

Cups with the Yongzheng mark and of the period, decorated with this motif, are preserved in many public and private collections. Compare a closely related cup in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Ye Peilan, Beauty of Ceramics: Gems of Doucai, vol. 6, Taipei, 1993, pl. 102, together with one in the Capital Museum, Beijing, pl. 96; and a cup in the Ise collection, illustrated in The Enchanting Chinese Ceramics from the Ise Collection, Osaka, 2017, cat. no. 75. Further examples were sold at auction, such as a pair from the Edward T. Chow collection, sold twice in these rooms, 25th November 1980, lot 132, and again 20th May 1986, lot 108; another piece of this size and design, sold in our London rooms, 6th November 2019, lot 152.

此對小盃精心繪製團菊紋，與蓮花相映成趣，雍正皇帝對古典風格之偏愛一露無遺。每隻小盃瓷胎纖薄端正，做工精良，清澈素明，凝潤光淨，以雍正尤為珍視之成化年間原型為靈感。對比一例，由出土自江西景德鎮御窰遺址成化層之碎片重組，並飾以團菊紋及落有成化款識，載於《明代成化御窰瓷器：景德鎮御窰遺址出土與故宮博物館藏傳世瓷器對比》，北京，2016年，圖版179。

許多私人或公眾收藏中皆藏有相似花紋及雍正款識小盃。對比極相似小杯一例，藏於北京故宮博物院，載於葉佩蘭，《美哉陶瓷·鬪彩名瓷》，第6冊，台北，1993年，圖版102，同有一例藏於北京首都博物館，見圖版96；另參見伊勢彥信所藏一盃，收錄於《伊勢彥信收藏世界為之心動的中國陶瓷》，大阪，2017年，編號75。更多器例曾由拍賣行售出，如一對出自仇焱之收藏專場之小盃先後易手於香港蘇富比1980年11月25日，編號132，及1986年5月20日，編號108；再有一同款同型例子，售於倫敦蘇富比2019年11月6日，編號152。