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Lot Essay
The cranes, peaches, lingzhi and wan emblems are all symbols of longevity, and suggest that this box, with its inner contents, may have been presented as an Imperial birthday gift.
Compare with three Wanli-marked boxes of closely related pattern, but lacking the additional peach sprig to the primary medallion on the cover. The first is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - 35 - Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red (II), Hong Kong, 2000, pl. 109; the second is illustrated in Chinese Ceramics in The Idemitsu Collection, Japan, 1987, fig. 732; the last from the Toguri collection is illustrated in Sekai toji zenshu, vol. 14, Tokyo, 1976, pl. 103, and was later sold at Sotheby's London, 9 June 2004, lot 43.
Compare with three Wanli-marked boxes of closely related pattern, but lacking the additional peach sprig to the primary medallion on the cover. The first is illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum - 35 - Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red (II), Hong Kong, 2000, pl. 109; the second is illustrated in Chinese Ceramics in The Idemitsu Collection, Japan, 1987, fig. 732; the last from the Toguri collection is illustrated in Sekai toji zenshu, vol. 14, Tokyo, 1976, pl. 103, and was later sold at Sotheby's London, 9 June 2004, lot 43.