A LARGE BLUE AND WHITE 'PEONY' JAR YUAN DYNASTY | 元 青花纏枝牡丹紋罐

L. Michiels Antiquitiés, Bruxelles (according to label).

L. Michiels Antiquitiés，布魯塞爾（標簽）

Sturdily potted guan jars painted with bold designs in cobalt blue are undoubtedly the Yuan dynasty’s greatest contribution to Chinese porcelain tradition. These jars diverge dramatically from the elegant simplicity of the Song dynasty (960-1279), which favoured subdued monochromatic wares in smaller formats, and evidence the flamboyant style preferred by the Mongol rulers of the Yuan dynasty. This change in direction accelerated the demise of most other kiln centres in China, and established the kilns at Jingdezhen as the most important centre of ceramic production for centuries to come.

The painting seen on this jar encompasses the most characteristic elements of Yuan porcelain design: the peony scroll on the body, lotus scroll on the shoulder, classic scroll on the rim and lappets. This lively new decorative vernacular was particularly well-expressed in underglaze blue. The vast trading networks of the Yuan dynasty ensured rapid transmission of styles and tastes throughout the empire. Persian traders supplied the kilns at Jingdezhen with cobalt ore from Kashan providing the vibrant blue for which the period is known. Demand for blue and white guan was considerable from its initial manufacture, not only in China but in Southeast Asian and particularly in the Middle East. 

Guans of nearly identical decoration include a jar in the Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Tokyo illustrated in Chinese Ceramics in the Idemitsu Collection, Tokyo, 1987, pl. 617; an example from the Ataka collection published in Gakuji Hasebe, Masterpieces of Chinese and Korean Ceramics in the Ataka Collection. China, Tokyo, 1980, pl. 86; and a further jar in the collection of Baotou City Cultural Relics Administrative Bureau, Inner Mongolia illustrated in Zhongguo Wenwu Jinghua Daquan. Taoci Juan [Gems of China's cultural relics. Ceramics section], Hong Kong, 1993, pl. 550.

Variations on this design include a jar with a four-petal band rather than the classic scroll border illustrated in Yoshiaki Yabe, Toji Taikei. 41. Gen no Shimitsu [Compendium of Ceramics. 41. Blue and white ware of the Yuan dynasty], Tokyo, 1974, pl. 27; a jar without a scroll border in the Palace Museum, Beijing illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum, Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red (I), Hong Kong, 2000, pl. 6; and an example with a band of waves around the collar in the Shanghai Museum included in the Museum’s exhibition, Splendors in Smalt: Art of Yuan Blue-and-white Porcelain, Shanghai, 2012, cat. no. 7.

元代青花罐紋飾鮮明，罐形穩實，無疑乃元朝對中國瓷器傳統最偉大之貢獻。宋瓷簡約優雅，崇尚之品多屬單色釉器及小巧珍瓷，與此類元代瓷罐對比鮮明，後者更能反映蒙古族君王對 華麗風格之喜愛。如此風尚改變，另中國各地瓷窰衰落更為迅速，並奠定景德鎮以後數世紀作為瓷都之重要地位。

本品紋飾，具備元瓷紋飾特質：罐身飾牡丹紋，肩部飾蓮紋，口沿飾纏枝紋飾及葉紋，生意盎然，新穎於當時，以青花描繪尤其靈動。元朝商務網絡龐大，藝術風格品味皇朝之內流行迅速，波斯商人從卡尚進口鮮豔鈷料，供景德鎮瓷窰所用。自首先燒成開始，青花罐需求一直甚高，無論於中土或東南亞及中東均受歡迎，尤以後者為甚。

東京出光美術館收藏一罐例，紋飾幾乎完全相同，圖載於《中国陶磁：出光美術館蔵品図錄》，東京，1987年，圖版617；另比一例，出自安宅收藏，載於《安宅コレクション东洋陶磁名品図录》，東京，1980年，圖版86；再比一例，出自內蒙古包頭市文物管理處收藏，圖載於《中國文物精華大全，陶瓷卷》，香港，1993年，圖版550。

相近紋飾，可比較一例，無纏枝紋飾但繪四瓣環紋，圖載於藤岡了一，《陶磁大系：元の染付》，卷41，東京，1974年，圖版27；北京故宮博物院收藏一例，無纏枝環紋，載於《故宮博物院藏文物珍品大系·青花釉里紅（下）》，上海，2000，圖版6；上海博物館亦收藏一例，罐頸飾波紋，曾展於《幽藍神采：元代青花瓷器特集》展出，2012年，編號7。