Dish

Object Details

• Description

  Blue-and-white.

  Clay: fine white porcelain.

  Glaze: plain, transparent.

  Decoration: in underglaze cobalt blue; "the three friends" in center inside, garden scene with figures outside.

  Six-character Ch'eng-hua mark in blue on base.

  One of a pair with F1951.10 - 51.11. (The dishes can be called a pair in the sense that they came into the collection together, but this does not imply they were made or fired as a pair).

• Marks

  Six-character Ch'eng-hua mark in blue on base

• Label

  This dish is very similar to F1951.10; both are decorated the same and both bear a Chenghua (1465-87) reign mark on the base. Some scholars accept both dishes as genuine works of the Chenghua reign; however, it is very possible that this dish (F1951.11) is a later copy, probably made during the eighteenth century. Regardless of its date, it is a very refined piece that offers room for speculation about what is the acceptable range of variation for genuine Chenghua wares; or the dish may be a window onto Qing dynasty copies of earlier porcelain.

  Reasons to question the date of the bowl include the bluish tint of the clear glaze, which is not typical of the Chenghua period. Also, the way the foot has been trimmed relates more closely to practices during the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) than during the Ming. Moreover, the treatment of the cobalt lines in the painting looks mannered, as if the painter was intentionally trying to introduce some areas of darker blue to resemble a naturally occuring effect seen in Chenghua wares.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Plum Blossoms, Chrysanthemums, and Bamboo (July 30 to December 4, 2011)

  Chinese Ceramics (May 9, 1993 to April 17, 1995)

  The Arts of China (November 18, 1990 to September 7, 2014)

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

  Chinese Art (March 9, 1981 to March 12, 1982)

  Chinese Ceramics (May 9, 1980 to March 6, 1981)

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

  Chinese Art (January 1, 1963 to March 6, 1981)

  Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Ceramics (March 7, 1957 to January 1, 1963)

  Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Ceramics, 1955 (September 19, 1955 to November 10, 1955)

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

  Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Art, 1953 (May 26, 1953 to September 15, 1953)

  Stone Sculpture, Buddhist Bronze, and Chinese Painting (May 2, 1923 to February 25, 1956)

• Origin

  Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, China

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Vessel

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1400s

• Place

  China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen

• Topic

  Porcelain, Art, Chinese Art, Qing dynasty (1644 - 1911), Ceramics, Jingdezhen ware, Ming dynasty (1368 - 1644)

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Vessels (containers)