A VERY RARE AND FINELY CARVED QINGBAI ‘DRAGON’ EWER

Qingbai porcelains have been discovered over a vast area from the Liao territories in the far North to nations in Southeastern Asia. It was arguably the most commercially successful Song ware. The finest qingbai porcelains were produced in the kilns at Jingdezhen in Jiangxi province. In his treatise Tao ji (Ceramic Records), the distinguished Southern Song (AD 1127-1279) historian Jiang Qi described exquisite, pure white porcelain and noted that it was popular over a wide region, and that, even outside the kiln area, it was known as Raoyu ‘jade of Rao’. Raozhou was the name of the region in which the Jingdezhen kilns were located. It seems probable that qingbai porcelains were also used by the Northern Song court. A widely cited entry in Song huiyao jigao (Collected Statutes of the Song Dynasty) states that: “A porcelain warehouse was established at Jianlong Square for the storage of white porcelain and lacquer wares from Mingzhou and Yuezhou (both in Zhejiang), Raozhou, Dingzhou (in Hebei) and Qingzhou (in Shandong).” This suggests that porcelains from Raozhou, which would be qingbai porcelains from Jingdezhen, were among those being stored and guarded in the Imperial Warehouse at the Northern Song capital, Kaifeng.

The present carved ewer with dragon head-shaped spout and handle is a fine example of qingbai porcelains produced at Jingdezhen. Although the sculpted dragons and carved floral design were popular motifs on qingbai wares, the combination of both on a globular ewer appears to be unique. A qingbai ewer of very similar form and decorative technique, but with a plain spout and handle is illustrated by J. Wirgin, Sung Ceramic Designs, London, 1979, pl. 23c. Another qingbai ewer of similar form, but lacking the sculpted dragon design is illustrated by Gakuji Hasebe, Sekai toji zenshu, vol. 12, Tokyo, 1977, pl. 159. Compare, also, qingbai ewers with sculpted dragon designs illustrated in J. Wirgin, Sung Ceramic Designs, ibid., pl. 28 a-e.