A LARGE BLUE AND WHITE 'FIGURAL' BOWL, MING DYNASTY, TIANQI / CHONGZHEN PERIOD

A LARGE BLUE AND WHITE 'FIGURAL' BOWL

MING DYNASTY, TIANQI / CHONGZHEN PERIOD

明天啟 / 崇禎 青花人物故事圖大盌

the deep rounded sides supported on a slightly tapered foot, the exterior painted in inky cobalt tones, one side with a young official traveling with a group of military officers carrying a palanquin, another side with two boys leading a buffalo by a cord tied to the animal's nose, amid swirling clouds obscuring the mountainous landscape and dividing the scenes, the interior centered with a medallion enclosing a scholar reading beneath a rocky overhang, the base with an apocryphal six-character Chenghua mark in underglaze blue within a double circle, the rim bound in metal, Japanese lacquer cover and Japanese wood box (4)

及 日本 漆蓋

Diameter 14⅛ in., 35.9 cm