
Coco Li
Cataloguer / Sale Coordinator, Chinese Works of Art
This auction has ended. View lot details


Sold for US$70,350 inc. premium
Our Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialist
Cataloguer / Sale Coordinator, Chinese Works of Art

Senior Vice President, US Head, Asian Art Group

Vice President and Head of Department

Senior Specialist
清雍正 《大清雍正年製》雙圈楷書款 斗彩九桃仙鶴紋盤
Provenance:
Bonhams, Hong Kong, 29 May 2008, lot 572 (one of a pair)
來源:
香港邦瀚斯,2008 年 5 月 29 日,拍品編號 572 (其一)
The auspicious symbols on this dish all relate to longevity. The peach tree has been considered sacred in China since ancient times and its wood was believed to be able to avert evil. According to legend, the Queen Mother of the West, Xiwangmu, had a peach tree which conferred immortality on anyone eating one of its peaches. Cranes are companions to Shoulao, the god of longevity, and are closely associated with immortals, serving as their mounts, and are believed to live for a thousand years. Lingzhi is valued for its medicinal properties and in ancient times, was believed to be able to revive the dead. Nine peaches appear on this dish, with nine being homophonous with the word for eternity, and eight cranes symbolize the eight Immortals, who are often depicted with Shoulao in pieces intended as birthday gifts. This dish with its longevity motifs were almost certainly intended to be used at a birthday celebration.