A fine and rare yellow-ground blue and white 'gardenia' dish, Mark and period of Zhengde | 明正德 黃地青花梔子花盤 《大明正德年製》款

Vividly painted in underglaze blue with spays of gardenia against a brilliant yellow ground, the present dish is a fine example of a much-coveted Ming dynasty design. Dishes of this type were produced at the Ming imperial kilns at Jingdezhen from the Xuande (1426-1435) to the Jiajing (1522-1566) reigns and are also attested in other color schemes, including in brown and white and in underglaze blue without the addition of an enameled yellow ground. 

During the Zhengde period (1505-1521), a distinctive stylistic change occurred in the rendering of this motif, exemplified on the present dish. Unlike bolder and more crowded gardenia dishes of the 15th century, Zhengde examples possess a distinct refinement; making more liberal use of negative space, tightening the central design, spreading out and altering the arrangement of the floral and fruit sprays on the well, and occasionally pairing down the reign mark on the reverse from six characters to a four-character version. For Xuande and Chenghua prototypes of this design in the British Museum, London, see Jessica Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics. Catalogue of Late Yuan and Ming Ceramics in The British Museum, London, 2001, pls 4:43 and 6:16.

The gardenia flower on dishes of this type, zhizi in Chinese, is not immediately associated with any auspicious meaning, but its distinctive fragrance was popular among ladies who wore branches of gardenia in their hair. It was also used for flavoring tea and for preparing cosmetics, and the small fruits of the plant were coveted for dyeing–producing a fine yellow or orange color–as well as for their medicinal benefits.

Examples of this bold and lively design remain in the world’s most important collections. Compare a closely related dish of this type preserved in the British Museum, London, illustrated in Jessica Harrison-Hall, op. cit., pl. 8:24, together with a slightly larger example, pl. 8:23; another of slightly larger size, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Imperial Porcelains from the Reign of Hongzhi and Zhengde in the Ming Dynasty, Beijing, 2017, pl. 235; a third in the Shanghai Museum, illustrated in Lu Minghua, Studies of the Shanghai Museum Collections: Ming Imperial Porcelain, Shanghai, 2007, pl. 1-41; and a fourth from the collection of Sir Percival David, now also in the British Museum, London, published in Soame Jenyns, Ming Pottery and Porcelain, London, 1988, col. pl. H. 

For further examples of this type represented in prominent private collections, compare one from the Meiyintang Collection, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 9th October 2012, lot 43; another formerly in the collections of R.H.R. Palmer, and Roger and Maureen Pilkington, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 5th April 2017, lot 4; another from the collection of the Toguri Museum of Art, sold twice in our London rooms in 1963 and 2004, and again in our Hong Kong rooms, 8th October 2013, lot 213; a further example from the Tianminlou Collection, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 2nd April 2019, lot 12; and a fifth example from the Leshantang Collection of Tsai I-Ming, also sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 8th October 2023, lot 103.

此盤以釉下青花繪梔子花枝，黃地瑩亮嬌嫩，色彩對比鮮明，構圖大膽，堪為明代典範之作。此類器皿由景德鎮御窯燒製，始見於宣德（1426–1435）年間，延續至嘉靖（1522–1566）時期，另可見白地醬彩及未施黃釉之青花變體。

至正德年間（1505–1521），此圖案風格出現顯著變化，本品即為其代表。與十五世紀構圖密集、筆觸厚重的栀子花盤相比，正德作品更顯文雅，常見留白處理更為從容，中央圖案收緊，盤內壁之花果枝亦有所調整，使紋飾更具節奏感，且部分底款由六字簡化為四字。關於此圖案於宣德與成化時期之先例，可參見倫敦大英博物館藏品，著錄於Jessica Harrison-Hall《大英博物館藏元代晚期與明代陶瓷圖錄》，圖版4:43與6:16。

中國瓷器少見以梔子花為主題，然其馥郁芳香深受女子喜愛，常用作髮飾，或浸泡入茶、製作妝粉。其果實可製成黃或橙色染料，亦具藥用功效，歷代文獻皆有記載。

此種風格奔放而富韻律之設計，現藏於多處世界頂級公私收藏。可參見大英博物館藏一例與本品極為接近，著錄於同書圖版8:24，另見尺寸略大者，圖版8:23；北京故宮博物院亦藏一例，載於《明代弘治正德御窯瓷器》，北京，2017年，圖版235；上海博物館所藏之例，著錄於陸明華《上海博物館藏品研究大系：明代官窯瓷器》，上海，2007年，圖版1-41；另見出自大維德爵士舊藏之一器，今亦藏於大英博物館，見Soame Jenyns《明代陶瓷》，倫敦，1988年，圖版H。

私人收藏中亦有若干傳世之例：玫茵堂舊藏一例，售於香港蘇富比，2012年10月9日，編號43；另見原帕默及琵金頓伉儷收藏之例，售於香港蘇富比，2017年4月5日，編號4；東京戶栗美術館舊藏一例，曾於1963年及2004年兩度釋出於倫敦蘇富比，再於2013年10月8日易手於香港蘇富比，編號213；另有天民樓珍藏之例，售於2019年4月2日，編號12；以及一例出自蔡一鳴先生樂善堂收藏，近售於2023年10月8日香港蘇富比，編號103。