YONGZHENG SIX-CHARACTER MARK IN UNDERGLAZE BLUE WITHIN A DOUBLE SQUARE AND OF THE PERIOD (1723-1735)

The beautiful design on this dish is typically described as 'lotus bouquet' and indeed the majority of the flowers, pod and leaves belong to the auspicious lotus plant. However, the bouquet also includes additional auspicious plants, such as the arrow-shaped sagittaria sagittifolia, a symbol both of generosity and of food in a time of shortage, and a stalk of millet, symbolizing an abundance of grain. The symbolism of these bouquets had been a source of inspiration for the Chinese artists since Song times, and continued into the Qing, as can be seen from the similar combination of plants, with the addition of peonies, depicted in the famous painting by Lang Shining (Giuseppe Castiglione, 1688-1766), entitled Assembly of Auspicious Plants, in which the plants are shown in a Song dynasty celadon vase. See P. Valder, The Garden Plants of China, London, 1999, p. 230. The 'lotus bouquet' motif was very popular in the early 15th century, and was also admired in the Qing dynasty, when copies of these dishes were made for the Qing emperors.

Small dishes of this type more often bear Qianlong or Daoguang marks, and the present lot is unusual in bearing a Yongzheng mark. One of the only other examples which appears to be published is the one illustrated in Catalog of the Special Exhibition of K'ang-Hsi, Yung-Cheng and Ch'ien-Lung Porcelain Ware from the Ch'ing Dynasty in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1986, p. 69, no. 32.