A rare blue and white ‘boys’ ewer, Mark and period of Jiajing | 明嘉靖　青花八子嬰戲圖執壺　《大明嘉靖年製》款

The ‘boys at play’ motif was particularly popular during the Ming dynasty, embodying auspicious wishes for familial prosperity. This theme was widely employed across diverse decorative media, including porcelain, lacquer, and textiles.

Framed within peach-shaped panels, one side of the present ewer depicts a cheerful boy wearing an official’s hat riding a hobby horse, attended by three companions acting as servants: one holds a lotus leaf as a parasol, another carries a stool for him to rest upon or to help him mount more easily, and the third announces his arrival with a stick. On the reverse, a boy rides a goat led by another child, while two companions follow, one waving a banner.

Comparable examples include a pair with covers in the collection of the Tokugawa Reimeikai Foundation, illustrated in Min Shin no bijutsu [Art of the Ming and Qing Dynasties], vol. 5, Osaka Municipal Art Museum, Osaka, 1980, cat. no. 1–61. Another covered ewer is in the British Museum, from the collections of Charles Ernest Russell and Sir Percival David (acc. no. PDF,B.617). A further example, lacking its cover, is in the Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Tokyo, illustrated in Chinese Ceramics in the Idemitsu Collection, Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Tokyo, 1987, pl. 704. See also an example without a cover, offered at Christie’s London, 16th November 1998, lot 72, from the collections of T. T. Tsui and Marchant.

嬰戲紋飾在明代尤為盛行，寄託了家族興旺、多子多福的吉祥寓意。這一主題廣泛應用於瓷器、漆器及織物等多種裝飾媒介中。

此執壺於桃形開光內飾嬰戲圖：一側繪一戴官帽的歡快童子，騎竹馬作策騎狀，旁有三名童僕隨侍，一人高舉荷葉為傘，一人手捧坐凳供其歇息或墊腳上馬，另一人持小杖作鳴鑼開道狀；另一側則繪一童子騎羊，前有同伴牽引，後有兩童跟隨，其中一人揮動小旗。

可比實例包括：德川黎明會藏帶蓋執壺一對，圖見《中国美術展シリーズ5．明清の美術》，卷5，大阪市立美術館，大阪，1980年，圖版1–61。大英博物館藏帶蓋執壺一件，源自查爾斯．歐內斯特．羅素（Charles Ernest Russell）及大維德爵士舊藏（館藏編號：PDF,B.617）。東京出光美術館藏無蓋執壺一件，圖見《出光美術館蔵中国陶磁》，1987年，圖版704。另見倫敦佳士得1998年11月16日，編號72（無蓋執壺），源自徐展堂及馬錢特舊藏。