Bottle of the type known as meiping

Cover lost. Blue-and-white.
Clay: fine white porcelain.
Glaze: plain, transparent; slight crackle at base.
Decoration: in underglaze cobalt blue; floral scrolls.

Historical period(s)
Ming dynasty, Yongle reign, 1403-1424
Medium
Porcelain with cobalt decoration under colorless glaze
Style
Jingdezhen ware
Dimensions
H x W: 24.8 x 15.2 cm (9 3/4 x 6 in)
Geography
China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1952.5a-b
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Bottle

Keywords
China, flower, Jingdezhen ware, Ming dynasty (1368 - 1644), porcelain, Yongle reign (1403 - 1424)
Provenance
Provenance research underway.
Description

Cover lost. Blue-and-white.
Clay: fine white porcelain.
Glaze: plain, transparent; slight crackle at base.
Decoration: in underglaze cobalt blue; floral scrolls.

Label

Improvements in porcelain production, including in the removal of impurities from clay, led to a new desire in the Yongle reign to create spacious designs that showcased the snowy brilliance of the porcelain itself. The imagery here is standard of the Yongle period, including the motifs' display of natural color variations in the blue that result from mineral inclusions in the cobalt imported from Iran. During firing, silvery-black-purple crystalline spots were often produced, a separation of colors known as the "heaped and piled" effect.
  
The fluidly painted lotus flowers, buds, large leaves, and grain stalks display a sensitive observation of nature that was new in Yongle-period porcelain decoration. The combination of lotus and grain stalks was probably understood as a visual pun, or rebus, reading "Peace year after year"--an especially good motto for the Yongle emperor, who had usurped the throne and needed to establish stability at the court. 

Published References
  • Oriental Ceramics: The World's Great Collections. 12 vols., Tokyo. vol. 10, pl. 92.
  • Sekai toji zenshu [Catalogue of the World's Ceramics]. 16 vols, Tokyo, 1955-1958. vol. 11: p. 197, fig. 70.
  • Mayuyama Junkichi, H. Igaki. Chinese Ceramics in the Freer Gallery of Art. no. 43, October 1956. pl. 3.
  • Mayuyama Junkichi. Obei shuzo chugoku toji zuroku [Chinese Ceramics in the West]. Tokyo. pl. 90.
  • Ming Porcelains in the Freer Gallery of Art. Washington, 1953. p. 12, fig. 2.
  • Jan Stuart. Guiding Luminaries Charles Lang Freer and John A. Pope: the Freer Gallery of Art's Chinese Ceramic Collection. vol. 85 London. p. 125, fig. 18.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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