Footnotes

Treasury 7, no. 1530


福州漆蹲猿負桃鼻煙壺
大概為御製品，1750～1800


Well-Balanced Longevity

Metallic-greenish-grey, greenish-gold, cinnabar-red, and black lacquer, and textile; with a flat lip and flat, irregular foot of a shape dictated by the subject; moulded in the form of a squatting monkey, its feet crossed, its left hand resting on them, its right hand raised to steady a large peach supported on its back, the monkey painted metallic greenish-grey over black, rubbed through in places, the peach cinnabar-red, the colour extending over the lip and into the inner neck, the outer peach with rubbed greenish-gold lacquer, the interior black with a brownish-black joint line
Probably imperial, 1750–1800
Height: 6.11 cm
Mouth/lip: 0.64/1.55 and 1.44 cm. (oval)
Stopper: jasper; vinyl collar
Condition: some minor loss of a thin layer of cinnabar-red lacquer on the lip; normal abrasions through use to the surface. General relative condition: excellent

Provenance:
Robert Kleiner (1997)

Published:
Treasury 7, no. 1530

Commentary:
The group to which this bottle belongs is discussed under Treasury 7, nos. 1528 and 1529, where it is proposed as a Fuzhou art form, but possibly a Beijing palace version of it, perhaps with workers co-opted from Fuzhou.

It is one of the most spectacular of them all because of its delightful subject. The monkey (hou) can denote a wish for advancement to the second-highest rank in the nobility, the marquis (hou). It can also suggest the meaning descendants (houdai). The peach, as always, denotes longevity. When viewed together, they form a composite motif that evokes the legendary monkey, Sun Wukong, who in the famous story of Monk Xuanzhuang's adventures in search of Buddhist texts, Xiyou ji, first published in 1592, stole the peaches of immortality from the gardens of Xiwangmu (Queen Mother of the West), the Daoist Supreme Goddess.

It is not the subject matter alone that makes this bottle so spectacular, however, it is its sculptural qualities and the expression on the creature's face. The squatting monkey is superbly realized, the weight of its burden bending its neck and needing support from its upraised right hand, while its expression is one of wide eyed bemusement, hovering between delight and acceptance at carrying so large a symbol of longevity. This group of bottles is extremely rare, and to find three masterpieces in one collection is unusual, although five remain in the imperial collection (cited in Treasury 7, nos. 1528 and 1529) but the Qianlong emperor had the distinct advantage of being able to order up as many as he wanted, whereas the Blochs had to compete for the few surviving examples in circulation).
As so often with Fuzhou bottles, the original intention was probably to cover the form of the monkey with an even colour, but it has worn through where the relief is most prominent to reveal the black underlying colour. It is a very distinct black here, not the frequently-used, brownish-black, variegated colour that might have been the lacquer used to build up the body with its multiple layers of textile, so perhaps the artist had the foresight to realize that the surface layer might be worn through, and put a layer of proper black lacquer beneath it. In the case of the peach, however, it was clearly meant to be rubbed through to give the effect of the variegated surface of the fruit as it ripens.
We can only guess at the original stopper here, but an obvious choice would be a severed branch, perhaps with a leaf or two, from which the peach grows.
A conceptually related bottle is the lovely white nephrite bottle from the J & J Collection of a monkey seated holding a vase on its back, the neck of the vase forming that of the bottle (Moss, Graham, and Tsang 1993, no. 13). Although in different materials, and certainly not made by the same craftsmen, the two are conceptually very close, and there is a strong sense of a stylistic link between the two. The jade bottle might well have been made at, or for the court, and it is possible that both were designed by the same designer, or at least inspired by a common original idea.


平穩的壽桃

黧、櫻草黃、朱紅、黑色漆，織物胎；平唇、平底足；模印蹲踞猴，猴背負一個桃果，右手支撐桃子，左手放在左腳上；猴身黑漆上施黧漆而有所擦掉，桃果、唇、頸內壁施朱紅漆，桃外壁再施半磨去的櫻草黃漆，壺內施黑漆，有緇色連結線

大概為御製品，1750～1800
高：6.11 厘米
口經/唇經：0.64/1.55、1.44 厘米（橢圓形）
蓋：碧玉，乙烯基座
狀態敘述：唇上朱紅漆有不重要的損耗，壺表面因累年觸摸而呈現一般性的磨損；一般相對的狀態：極善

來源：
Robert Kleiner (1997)
文獻﹕
Treasury 7， 編號1530

說明：
這種夾紵漆器或許是福州的特產，而甚有宮廷風味。或許是進貢的，或許是地方的宮廷作坊作的，或許是調到北京作坊的專家作作的，待考。請參閱Treasury 7，編號1528、1529的論述。如此罕見的精品，一個收藏系列能收三件真是難得的。不錯，故宮收五件，但乾隆皇帝要有多少可以下詔令作多少；伯樂氏要找零星的傳世物而爭購。

漆匠原來的意思大概是給猿猴髹上均勻的顏色，但上層的黧色磨掉處能看見下一層的漆黑色。看那麼單純的漆黑色，好像漆匠預知上層的漆一定會有所磨掉，因而特別髹上了黑烏烏的下一層。就桃子來說，漆匠顯然是有意利用上層櫻草黃漆和下層露出的朱紅漆的對襯以顯示成熟桃子的樣子。