A rare pair of Imperial doucai 'chrysanthemum' saucer-dishes

Yongzheng six-character marks and of the period

Footnotes

清雍正 鬥彩團菊紋盤一對 青花「大清雍正年製」楷書款

Provenance:
A Hong Kong private collection, acquired during the 1980s, by repute
A distinguished Asian private collection

來源：
傳香港私人收藏，購於1980年代
重要亞洲私人收藏

The present pair of chrysanthemum dishes displays a mastery of the doucai technique, successfully rendered with the use of brightly coloured enamels of iron-red and yellow, together with soft tones of green enamel within underglaze blue outlines, providing a visually appealing refined contrast, in accordance with the Yongzheng Emperor's discerning aesthetic taste.

The design on the pair of dishes was inspired by Imperial ceramics made during the Chenghua period, particularly in the medallion scheme enclosing a double foliate chrysanthemum blossom, flanked by foliate lotus sprays; compare a doucai 'chrysanthemum and butterfly' decorated jar and cover, Chenghua mark and period, from the Qing Court Collection, illustrated in The Complete Collection of the treasures of the Palace Museum: Porcelains in Polychrome and Contrasting Colours, Shanghai, 2007, no.166; see also a Chenghua-period bowl illustrated in A Legacy of Chenghua: Imperial Porcelain of the Chenghua Reign Excavated from Zhushan, Jingdezhen, Hong Kong, 1993, pl.C119.

A very similar doucai dish of identical design, Yongzheng mark and period, but slightly smaller, was sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 6 April 2016, lot 3623. A similar design of double chrysanthemum blossoms also adorned jars and covers; see a related pair of similarly decorated doucai jars and covers, Yongzheng marks and period, which was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 27 November 2013, lot 3209.

A related design, but with the medallion enclosing three blossoms, was also used on cups and bowls; see a pair of doucai 'chrysanthemum' bowls, Yongzheng marks and period, illustrated in Chinese Porcelain: The S.C. Ko Tianminlou Collection, Hong Kong, 1987, p.142, pl.100; and a pair of bowls which was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 2 December 2015, lot 3120; and see also a cup which was sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 8 April 2013, lot 3195.

盤敞口，淺腹，圈足。通體施白釉，盤口沿及內飾青花弦紋兩道，盤外壁以鬥彩飾五組團菊花，間以勾蓮紋，盤心飾鬥彩菊花一對，並以唐草紋圍繞，菊花綻放，唐草枝蔓彎曲互相串聯，佈置均勻。盤底書雙圈青花兩行六字「大清雍正年製」楷書款。

此對鬥彩盤，形制規整，胎質細密，胎骨輕薄，釉色瑩潤。其釉下淡雅青花及釉上礬紅彩、黃綠彩形成對比、淡雅自然、清寧雅緻。從各方面都體現雍正一朝認真嚴謹的製瓷風格。菊花自宋以來素有「延壽客」的美譽，雍正一朝亦見許多以菊花為紋飾或以菊瓣為形制的宮廷陳設品，足見雍正皇帝對菊紋的偏愛。

雍正時期的官窯瓷器以精細著稱，其鬥彩產品多仿成化窯，因此有「明看成化，清看雍正」之說。此盤亦習成化之風，紋飾仿成化鬥彩之團菊紋而作，但填彩技法不同於成化，所填色彩嚴格控制在青花輪廓線以內。見北京故宮博物院清宮舊藏一件明成化鬥彩團花菊蝶紋蓋罐（蓋為雍正時期後配），著錄於《故宮博物院藏文物珍品大系：五彩·鬥彩》，香港，2007年，編號166；另見景德鎮珠山出土一件明成化鬥彩團菊紋碗，著錄於《成窯遺珍：景德鎮珠山出土成化官窯瓷器》，香港，1993年，編號C119。

傳世品中雍正之例，見香港蘇富比曾售出一件鬥彩團菊紋盤，尺寸較之稍小，2016年4月6日，拍品編號3623；另見一對清雍正鬥彩團菊紋蓋罐，售於香港佳士得，2013年11月27日，拍品編號3209。香港天明樓藏一對清雍正鬥彩團花花卉紋碗亦可作比較，見《天明樓藏瓷》，香港，1987年，頁142，圖100；香港佳士得曾售出一對鬥彩團花紋碗，2015年12月2日，拍品編號3120；另見香港蘇富比曾售出一團花紋杯，2013年4月8日，拍品編號3195。