Bowl with eight trigrams

Object Details

• Description

  Bowl with everted rim on raised foot.

  Decoration;

  Cobalt blue pigment under clear glaze. Double blue ring inside lip rim. Double blue ring inside well at bottom surface of cup enclosing the taiji (yin yang) symbol. Exterior decorated with a diaper of waves around the underside above the foot and symbols of the Eight Trigrams directly under the rim.

  Mark: Six character mark within a double blue ring under the raised foot.

• Marks

  Six character mark: da qing Kangxi nian zhi.

  Six character mark: da qing Kangxi nian zhi.

• Label

  With its translucent porcelain body, purplish cobalt oxide design, and dramatic use of white space, this bowl is a fine example of the imperial porcelain wares produced at the Jingdezhen kiln during the reign of Qing emperor Kangxi (reigned 1662–1722). It features two of the best-known symbols associated with religious Daoism: a taiji diagram in the center of the interior and the bagua (Eight Trigrams) on the exterior. The taiji symbolizes the unity of the forces of yin and yang and the continuous regeneration of the universe. The Eight Trigrams are broken lines whose various combinations are believed to symbolize all the phenomena of the world.

• Provenance

  From at least 1884 to 1925

  Alfred Edward Hippisley (1848-1939), acquired in China in the period of 1876-1884 [1]

  1925

  Sale, New York, Anderson Galleries, The Hippisley Collection of Chinese Porcelain formed by Alfred E. Hippisley: Exhibited 1887-1912 at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, January 30, 1925, lot 191: “A pair of bowls” [2]

  Ralph M. Chait Galleries, Inc., New York [3]

  In 1995

  J. J. Lally & Co. Oriental Art, New York, from at least January 11, 1995 [4]

  From 1995

  Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from J. J. Lally & Co. Oriental Art, New York on October 8, 1995 [5]

  Notes:

  [1] Alfred Edward Hippisley acquired the bowl while serving as Commissioner of the Imperial Maritime Customs Service in Shanghai and Beijing between 1876 and 1884, see “Preface,” in Anderson Galleries, The Hippisley Collection of Chinese Porcelain formed by Alfred E. Hippisley (New York, January 30, 1925), np.

  Hippisley’s collection was exhibited at the National Museum (later Smithsonian Institution) in Washington DC in the years 1887-1912.

  A descriptive catalogue of the collection was published first in the Smithsonian Annual Report for 1887-88 and later republished in Alfred E. Hippisley, Sketch of the History of Ceramic Art in China, with a Catalogue of the Hippisley Collection of Chinese Porcelains (Washington, DC, 1902).

  The catalogue listed the bowl together with its pair as cats. 42, 43.

  In 1888 and again in 1909, Hippisley offered the collection to the National Museum, but the institution declined, see A. Hippisley to G. Brown Goode, Assistant Secretary, Smithsonian Institution (SI), December 22, 1883; G. Brown Goode to A. Hippisley, January 20, 1889; A. Hippisley to W. H. Holmes, Head Curator, Department of Anthropology, SI, September 20, 1909; A. Hippisley to R. Rathburn, Assistant Secretary, SI, November 17, 1909, copies in object file.

  [2] Lot 191 included two objects catalogued as “Pair of two bowls, Decoration: outside, a band of waves above foot, with the pa-Kwa or eight diagrams (see No. 26) above; inside, within a double circle, emblematic of the Ultimate Principle of Being, the Yir and Yun, the positive and negative Primordial Essences. All in deep blue under glaze. Mark: ‘Made during Kang-hsi period of Ching dynasty.’” The lot was sold for $40.

  [3] According to a note on an undated document from J.J. Lally & Co., the object was at the Chait Galleries in New York, date unknown.

  It is known that Ralph M. Chait gallery handled objects from the Hippisley collection and exhibited the Hippisley porcelains in March 1935, although it is uncertain whether F1995.8 was among exhibited items.

  [4] See document listing the bowl for approval for sale or return from J.J. Lally & Co., dated January 11, 1995, in object file.

  [5] See Purchase Order, dated to October 8, 1995, copy in object file.

  Following its acquisition, the bowl has been exhibited in “Daoism in the Arts in China,” December 16, 2006 - June 10, 2007, Freer Gallery of Art and "Looking Out, Looking In - Art in Late Imperial China," October 14, 2017 - July 15, 2018, Freer Gallery of Art.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

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

  Daoism in the Arts in China (December 16, 2006 to July 1, 2007)

  Alfred E. Hippisley Collection (1887-1912)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Alfred Edward Hippisley (1848-1939)

  Anderson Galleries

  Ralph M. Chait Galleries, Inc.

  J.J. Lally & Co. Oriental Art (active 1986-2021)

• 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.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1720s, 1660s

• Name

  J.J. Lally & Co. Oriental Art, Hippisley, Alfred Edward, Anderson Galleries, Ralph M. Chait Galleries, Inc.

• Place

  China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen

• Topic

  Cobalt pigment, Porcelain, Art, Kangxi reign (1662 - 1722), Daoism, Chinese Art, Qing dynasty (1644 - 1911), Ceramics, Jingdezhen ware, Bagua, Trigram

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Vessels (containers)

• On View

  Yes