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Lot Essay
The present lot belongs to a group of large blue and white jars and meiping of the 14th-16th centuries, depicting figures in landscapes and garden settings, that are taken from traditional literature and popular drama. The panoramic landscape scene is comparable to handscroll paintings of the early Ming period, and the continuity of the scene on this jar is achieved by a continuous line of curled clouds in the sky of the main register of decoration.
The jar illustrated in Panoramic Views of Chinese Patterns, Tokyo, 1985, no. 50, shown with a cover, is very similar to the present lot in that it incorporates figures playing weiqi as well as the rare inclusion of the Eight Immortals bordered by a similar wave band at the foot and frolicking horses on waves at the shoulder. Other jars showing variation in the borders, but without the Eight Immortals are illustrated in Sekai Toji Zenshu, vol. 14, Tokyo, 1976, nos. 35 and 36. Compare, also, the example from the Manno Art Museum, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 28 October 2002, lot 532.
The jar illustrated in Panoramic Views of Chinese Patterns, Tokyo, 1985, no. 50, shown with a cover, is very similar to the present lot in that it incorporates figures playing weiqi as well as the rare inclusion of the Eight Immortals bordered by a similar wave band at the foot and frolicking horses on waves at the shoulder. Other jars showing variation in the borders, but without the Eight Immortals are illustrated in Sekai Toji Zenshu, vol. 14, Tokyo, 1976, nos. 35 and 36. Compare, also, the example from the Manno Art Museum, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 28 October 2002, lot 532.