An extremely rare doucai and famille-rose 'lotus' handled vase, Seal mark and period of Qianlong | 清乾隆　鬪彩加粉彩勾蓮五色靈符貫耳扁壺　《大清乾隆年製》款

A Japanese private collection.

Kochukyo Co., Ltd, Tokyo.

5th Anniversary Exhibition. All-Stars of the Okada Collection: Masterworks of Korin, Jakuchu, Hokusai and the Ru Ware Kilns, Okada Museum of Art, Hakone, 2018-19, exh. no. 145 (unillustrated).

This vase features a compressed spherical form adorned with tubular handles on both sides. The body is decorated with lotus motifs, a pattern for which the Emperor exhibited particular fondness, frequently seen on doucai porcelains. However, the neck and lower body of this vase are embellished with famille-rose geometric designs, wherein the white enamel uncommon in traditional doucai decoration.

The famille-rose geometric patterns represent the ​​Five-Colored Talismans​​ used during the Dragon Boat Festival, also known as ​​Artemisia Leaf Talismans​​. The five colours symbolising the ​​Five Elements​​ (wood, metal, fire, water, earth) and ​​Five Directions​​ (east, south, west, north, center) were believed to embody divine power to ward off evil spirits, eliminate demons, and prevent diseases. As the Dragon Boat Festival falls within the solar term period when insects proliferate and diseases easily spread, these talismans reflect the Emperor’s aspiration to safeguard the nation’s prosperity, dispel malign influences, and invoke auspicious blessings for the people.

Commissioned in the eighth year of Qianlong’s reign (1743) as part of the imperial series of seasonal ceremonial bowls (see lot 1125 in this sale), this vase was produced in strict accordance with the edict mandating that designs ​​"align precisely with seasonal motifs"​​. Specifically crafted for the Dragon Boat Festival using the ​​"Artemisia Leaf Talisman"​​ pattern, it stands as a masterpiece among seasonal ritual wares. Its exceptionally compact and unique form is unrecorded in any public or private collection, suggesting it is likely a ​​unique surviving example​​, a distinctive category within Qianlong’s imperial porcelain corpus.

Dragon Boat Festival themed seasonal vessels are also documented on other porcelain types. The Art Museum of the Chinese University of Hong Kong preserves a painted enamel copper box donated by Mr. Quincy Chuang, adorned with the ​​five venoms​​ and ​​artemisia leaf talisman​​ motifs.

Two larger examples (approximately 36 cm) of this form are recorded: one housed in the Palace Museum, Taipei (accession no. 002784N000000000), decorated with doucai and iron-red dragon; another sold in these rooms, 31st October 1995 , lot 457, featuring underglaze-blue lotus motifs.

來源

日本私人收藏

壺中居，東京

展覽

《開館5周年記念展―美のスターたち―光琳．若冲．北斎．汝窯など名品勢ぞろい》， 岡田美術館，箱根，2018-19年，展覽編號145（沒載圖）

本器器形扁圓，兩側飾貫耳。通體飾蓮紋，皇帝似乎對蓮紋情有獨鍾，鬪彩器上常見。然本壺器頸及下腹飾粉彩五色幾何圖形，其中白彩於鬪彩紋飾罕見。

五色幾何圖形正是用於端午節的五色靈符，另稱艾葉靈符。五色被認為蘊含五行（木、金、火、水、土）五方（東、南、西、北、中），神力，能夠驅邪除魔、祛病強身。端午節在中國二十四節氣中是蟲多並容易滋生疾病的時節，五色靈符正是體現皇帝祈求國泰民安、驅除邪祟、迎祥納福的美好意願。

乾隆八年，皇帝下旨燒製歲時節令膳盌 （見本場拍品編號1125），「俱按時令花樣燒造」，並指明端陽節用「艾葉靈符」，本器屬於歲時節令器中的精品。本器造型嬌小獨特，傳世品中未見他例，應為孤品，為乾隆御器中獨特品種。

端午題材的歲時節令器也見於其它瓷器上。香港中文大學文物藏一件由莊貴侖先生捐贈的乾隆銅胎畫琺瑯蓋盒，上飾五毒及艾葉靈符。

本器同造型者見兩例，尺寸較大，都在36公分左右。一藏台北故宮博物院，飾鬪彩礬紅雲龍紋（故瓷002784N000000000）；另一售香港蘇富比1995年10月31日，編號457，飾青花蓮紋。