Accession Number
1982/1.222

Title
Bowl

Artist(s)
Chinese

Artist Nationality
Chinese (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
1700-1722

Medium & Support
porcelain with glaze

Dimensions
3 5/8 in x 7 3/8 in (9.21 cm x 18.73 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of the Estate of Hobart Taylor, Jr.

Subject matter
A porcelain powder blue bowl of the Kangxi reign (1662-1722) of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911). Powder blue, soufflé blue, snowflake blue or xue hua lan (雪花篮), sprinkled blue or sa lan (洒蓝), fish-roe blue (鱼子绿), and blown blue or chuiqing (吹青) are all terms used to describe a subset of famille verte porcelains that are covered with a cobalt blue ground comprising of many layered dots of various sizes, creating gradations in color. It was produced at Jingdezhen (景德镇), Jiangxi (江西), China for a very short time during the Kangxi  (康熙) reign (1661- 1722) of the Qing (清) dynasty (1644-1912), primarily from about 1700-1722. It is characterized by its rich, speckled cobalt underglaze surface covering the majority of the porcelain vessel. Sometimes, reserves are masked off using paper as a resist, to keep some areas of the porcelain white. These areas may be decorated later with underglaze cobalt blue or underglaze copper red before glazing and firing, or possibly decorated with famille verte enamels and gilding after glazing and firing. The designs often featured scenes from classical literature, "five color blue" landscapes, birds and flowers, beautiful ladies, the Hundred Antiquities, and auspicious objects and divine beings. The multiple firings and costly materials made powder blue wares extremely expensive to produce.

Physical Description
This porcelain bowl, with slightly flared tall sides on a footring, is covered in powder blue underglaze. It has four quatrifoil reserves on the exterior, and one large central foliate reserve and four smaller quatrifoil reserves in the interior. The white base has underglaze blue double circles and a central diaper-shaped endless knot mark. It is covered in a clear glaze. The smaller exterior and interior reserves are painted with polychrome overglaze enamels to depict the Hundred Antiquities, a landscape, a rock with flowers, and a flowering plant. The large central reserve is painted with peonies and a bird. The body of the bowl is covered in powder blue ground with overglaze gold enamel floral sprays. There is a paper label with "Chait Galleries New York" applied to base.  
This bowl is part of a ten-piece garniture set which includes: jars, 1982/1.206A, 1982/1.206B, 1982/1.206C, 1982/1.207A, 1982/1.207B, and 1982/1.207C; vases, 1982/1.208, 1982/1.215, 1982/1.216, 1982/1.220; plates, 1982/1.212, 1982/1.213, and bowls 1982/1.221,1982/1.22.

Primary Object Classification
Ceramic

Primary Object Type
bowl

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Keywords
Paeonia (genus)
birds (motifs)
blue-and-white (ceramic glaze)
bowl
bowls (vessels)
ceramic (material)
cobalt (mineral)
cobalt blue (pigment)
flower (motif)
landscapes (representations)
porcelain (visual works)
tea bowls