Sold Ceramics - Sold Blue and White Kangxi Period 1662-1722 - Other wares - Page 1

Object 2012564

Bowl

China

c.1700

Height 77 mm (2.71 inch), diameter of rim 157 mm (4.92 inch), diameter of footring 60 mm (1.97 inch), weight 175 grams (6.17 ounce (oz.))

Bowl or klapmuts on footring with a spreading flat rim. Decorated in underglaze blue on the outside with a continuous garden scene with a lady playing with a little boy and two laddies standing at a scholar's desk and swirling clouds with taihu (garden) rocks and a large banana plant. On the bottom a little boy dancing in a garden landscape with swirling clouds in a double concentric band. The sides are undecorated and on the rim a trellis pattern border with four reserves filled with peaches. Marked on the base with the six-character mark: Da Ming Cheng hua nian zhi, (Prepared during the Chenghua reign of the Great Ming Dynasty (1465-1487)), in a double circle, underglaze blue.

Bowls of this shape with a flat rim are traditionally called klapmuts in Dutch, comparing the shape with a cap with flaps. Rinaldi states that they were specially developed to meet a demand from European customers, who wanted to be able to rest their spoons in the bowl without damaging the edge. In fact, the form was already well-known, not as shallow bowls, but asl late 15th-early 16th century large and fairly deep dishes in underglaze blue or as Song and early Ming celadon saucers and dishes. The klapmuts is just another variety in the gradual development of this type. This decoration shows one of the most popular motifs of that time, the slender Chinese woman, holding a flower. In Dutch she was called a Lange Lijs, which became "Long Eliza" in English. (Rinaldi 1989, p.118), (Jörg & Van Campen 1997, p.60 & p.101)

The philosopher (Mengzi (also: Mencius, 370-290BC) is considered the second-greatest sage of China after Confucius. There is a saying in China, mengu sanqian (Mengzi's mother moved three time), meaning that a family simply has to move house if the surroundings of the home harm the development of a child's character, Legend has it that after the father's death. Mengzi's family moved near to the graveyard in order to be close to the father's grave. Soon Mengzi and the children in the neighbourhood started to imitate mourners. The mother did not think this a suitable atmosphere for a Confucian education and moved to the vicinity of a marketplace, where Mengzi imitated the shouts of the stallholders. At long last the mother moved to live in the vicinity of a school, where Mengzi tried to be like the teachers and eventually became a scholar himself. The number 'Three' in the saying of course does not mean exactly three, but 'many' moves instead. From the various versions of the story, this bowl depicts a fight between little Mengzi and a boy next door as the reason for moving. Hence the scene on the bowl exemplifies motherly care. (Suebsman 2019, p.38)

Condition: Two fleabites to the footring, a hairline and two restored frits to the rim, a star shaped hairline to the sides.

References:

Rinaldi 1989, p.118

Davison 1994, cat. 1334

Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 42 & 91

Suebsman 2019, cat. 8

Price: Sold.