
Olivia Xu
Associate Specialist
£1,500 - £2,000
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Specialist, Chinese Works of Art
清光緒 黃釉葵口折腰碗
礬紅「大清光緒年製」楷書款
Provenance: a Swiss private collection, and thence by descent
來源:瑞士私人收藏,並由後人保存迄今
Cups of this shape are known as zheyao bei (折腰杯) which literally means 'bow down cup', because of the vessel's unusual waist. The name comes from the famous verse 'to not sacrifice one's ideals in order to make a living' (不為五斗米折腰) written by the poet and politician Tao Yuanming 陶淵明 (365-427), symbolising the idealised noble virtues of traditional scholar-officials.