Bottle

Object Details

• Description

  Small bottle, with six-lobed body and slender neck. Standing on a basal ring. Wood stand with inscription.

  Clay: opaque, white porcelain.

  Glaze: faintly bluish-white.

  Decoration: painted in thin transparent enamels over glaze (tou ts'ai). Six-character reign mark under the foot.

• Marks

  The six character reign mark, enclosed in a double circle, reads "ta ch'ing yung cheng nien chih [chn]," "Made in the reign of the Yung Cheng Emperor" (1723-1735).

• Inscriptions

  The bottle is accompanied by a carved rosewood stand on top of which the following inscription appears:

  "yung cheng tou ts'zi sung chu mei p'ing hsueh an" [chn]. This inscription is carved in "li shu" [chn], or "official scrip" and may be rendered:

• Label

  The combination of sprigs of the fungus of immortality and narcissus, together with camellia, pine, peach, and flowering plum trees, means "may all your wishes come true in the New Year." Some of the dragons, symbols of imperial power, have a sprig of the magic fungus in their mouths to stress the wish for long life.

• Provenance

  From 1941 to 1945

  C. T. Loo & Company, New York, from September 1941[1]

  From 1945

  Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from C. T. Loo & Company on November 29, 1945 [2]

  Notes:

  [1] See C. T. Loo's stock card no. JD-41/13 where the vase is inventoried together with F1945.40a-b: "Vase porcelain Yung Chêng. Pair of small porcelain vases, decoration "t'ou tsai" on white background; with motives of flowers, bamboos and pine, dragons et waves designs. Yung Chêng," C. T. Loo & Frank Caro Archive, Musée Guimet, Paris, copy in object file. The vase was brought to the Freer Gallery for examination on December 30, 1944.

  [2] See C. T. Loo's invoice, dated November 29, 1945, copy in object file.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Looking Out, Looking In: Art in Late Imperial China (October 14, 2017 - ongoing)

  On Becoming Immortal (May 9, 1993 to August 15, 1994)

  Chinese Art (May 9 to November 29, 1993)

  Chinese Flower Paintings (March 18 to September 22, 1983)

  Chinese Ceramics (March 15, 1982 to July 10, 1986)

  Chinese Ceramics (April 11, 1978 to September 4, 1980)

  Centennial Exhibition, Gallery 13 (November 10, 1955 to March 1, 1957)

  Special Exhibition, Chinese Art, 1946 (August 7, 1946 to January 7, 1947)

• Previous custodian or owner

  C.T. Loo & Company (1914-1948)

• Origin

  Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, China

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Vessel

• On View

  Freer Gallery 13: Looking Out, Looking In: Art in Late Imperial China

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1720s, 1730s

• Name

  C.T. Loo & Company

• Place

  China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen

• Topic

  Porcelain, Art, Yongzheng reign (1723 - 1735), Chinese Art, Qing dynasty (1644 - 1911), Ceramics, Jingdezhen ware, Reign mark

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Vessels (containers)

• On View

  Yes