Rectangular Vase Illustrating Poems by Tao Qian and Su Shi, Kangxi period, 1662/1722

Not on View

Medium

porcelain with famille jaune and famille noire enamels on the biscuit

Dimensions

overall: 35.6 x 14 x 14 cm (14 x 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 in.)

Credit Line

Widener Collection

Accession Number

1942.9.608

Artists / Makers

Chinese Qing Dynasty (artist)

Image Use

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Inscription

in standard script on two sides in black enamel with the poems "Homecoming" by Tao Qian and "Second Ode to the Red Cliff" by Su Shi

Provenance

(S. Bing, Paris).[1] J. Pierpont Morgan [1837-1913], New York; (Duveen Brothers, New York and London]; sold 1915 to Peter A. B. Widener, Lynnewood Hall, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania; inheritance from Estate of Peter A. B. Widener by gift through power of appointment of Joseph E. Widener, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania; gift 1942 to NGA.

[1] Widener collection records (in NGA curatorial files) note that the vase was "formerly in the collection of Monsieur S. Bing, Paris." This information was not included in the provenance published in the NGA systematic catalogue entry (Little et al. 1998, 165-167).

Associated Names

Bing, S.
Duveen Brothers, Inc.
Morgan, Sr., J. Pierpont
Widener, Joseph E.
Widener, Peter Arrell Brown

Technical Summary

The high foot-ring has a fabric impression on the base and is unglazed. The interior of the foot is glazed with a matte bluish glaze. The molded sides of the vessel are slightly convex. On the interior eight triangular braces were luted onto the walls and into the corners, helping to keep the base, sides, and shoulder attached. Except for the mouth, the interior is unglazed and has some areas of fabric impression. The lip is repaired and entirely repainted in black.

Bibliography

1904: Morgan 1904-1911, 1:16, no. 11, pl. 62.

1942: Works of Art from the Widener Collection. Foreword by David Finley and John Walker. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1942: 23.

1947: Christensen, Erwin O. Chinese Porcelains of the Widener Collection. Washington, 1947 (rev. ed. 1956): 10.

1998: Bower, Virginia, Josephine Hadley Knapp, Stephen Little, and Robert Wilson Torchia. Decorative Arts, Part II: Far Eastern Ceramics and Paintings; Persian and Indian Rugs and Carpets. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 1998: 165-167, color repro.