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Lot Essay
The theme of the decoration on the body of this cloisonné flask is particularly interesting. On one side the circular section shows two dragons amongst waves. The upper dragon has five claws, while the lower dragon, which looks up at him, has only three claws. The five-clawed dragon represents the emperor, while it is likely that the three-clawed dragon represents the crown prince, who is receiving instruction from his father. Parallels can be drawn between this design and the famous hanging scroll on silk, preserved in the Palace Museum, Beijing, entitled Spring's Peaceful Message, which was painted by the Italian Jesuit missionary artist Giuseppe Castiglione, known at the Chinese court as Lang Shining (illustrated in The Qianlong Emperor - Treasures from the Forbidden City, National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, 2002, p. 30-31, no. 2). The painting shows a younger man bending slightly from the waist in a gesture of respect, and receiving a floral spray from an older man. The majority of scholars believe that this painting is intended to depict Prince Hongli (the future Qianlong emperor) receiving the sprig of blossom from his father, the Yongzheng emperor. Certainly the Qianlong emperor identified himself as the young man in an inscription which he wrote on the painting in 1782, when he was 71 years old. Both the painting on silk and the decoration on the current cloisonné vase suggest the respect of the young prince for his father, the emperor, and possibly anticipates the transfer of the mandate of heaven and the responsibility for the good of the empire that went with it. If this circular section depicts the emperor and crown prince, the imperial family is completed by the elegant phoenix shown on the crescent-shaped section on this side of the vessel, since the phoenix represents the empress.
The other side of the flask is decorated with auspicious creatures. On the crescent-shaped section of this side of the vase is a qilin with books expelled from its mouth. The qilin is a very auspicious mythical creature, believed to live for a thousand years and to be the noblest of all animals, and therefore to represent goodness. This creature is a symbol of longevity, happiness, illustrious progeny and wise administration. The appearance of a qilin was said to be a sign that a virtuous ruler was on the throne. The depiction of a qilin with a book referred to the legend of the birth of Confucius, according to which a qilin bearing a jade book appeared to his mother. Thus the depiction of a qilin expelling (literally spitting out) a book provides a wish 'May you give birth to an illustrious son'.
On the round section of this side of the flask auspicious theme is continued with nine gambolling lions. These can be symbolic of nine generations of one family under one roof, or can reflect a wish that all the members of a family live together in harmony. Both of these interpretations are due to a pun on the words for nine lions, jiu shi, sounding the same as the words for nine generations. The lion is also a military symbol and so nine lions also represent all nine nobles who have military power being brought together to bring peace to the empire, as expressed in the phrase jiuhe yikuang. Terese Tse Bartholomew (see Hidden Meanings in Chinese Art, San Francisco, 2006, p. 242) has noted that this brings to mind Prime Minister Guan Zhong of the Spring and Autumn period (c. AD 771-480), who consolidated the power of the king of Qi by calling together all the nobles with military power, who were then able to reduce the prevailing turmoil and establish a degree of peace.
The other side of the flask is decorated with auspicious creatures. On the crescent-shaped section of this side of the vase is a qilin with books expelled from its mouth. The qilin is a very auspicious mythical creature, believed to live for a thousand years and to be the noblest of all animals, and therefore to represent goodness. This creature is a symbol of longevity, happiness, illustrious progeny and wise administration. The appearance of a qilin was said to be a sign that a virtuous ruler was on the throne. The depiction of a qilin with a book referred to the legend of the birth of Confucius, according to which a qilin bearing a jade book appeared to his mother. Thus the depiction of a qilin expelling (literally spitting out) a book provides a wish 'May you give birth to an illustrious son'.
On the round section of this side of the flask auspicious theme is continued with nine gambolling lions. These can be symbolic of nine generations of one family under one roof, or can reflect a wish that all the members of a family live together in harmony. Both of these interpretations are due to a pun on the words for nine lions, jiu shi, sounding the same as the words for nine generations. The lion is also a military symbol and so nine lions also represent all nine nobles who have military power being brought together to bring peace to the empire, as expressed in the phrase jiuhe yikuang. Terese Tse Bartholomew (see Hidden Meanings in Chinese Art, San Francisco, 2006, p. 242) has noted that this brings to mind Prime Minister Guan Zhong of the Spring and Autumn period (c. AD 771-480), who consolidated the power of the king of Qi by calling together all the nobles with military power, who were then able to reduce the prevailing turmoil and establish a degree of peace.