A WUCAI CUP

MING DYNASTY, SIX-CHARACTER WANLI MARK AND OF THE PERIOD (1573-1619)

HEIGHT: 3.8CM;

DIAMETER: 6.7CM

The cup is with rounded sides rising from a straight foot to a flared rim. The exterior is brightly painted in wucai enamels with a scene of Daoist immortals and figures amidst a garden landscape; depicting a red-cloaked dignitary seated before another figure waving a tasselled banner, the reverse with an acolyte and a horse carrying baskets of offerings, journeying below two immortals riding on flying cranes, all between a band of scrolling lingzhi at the rim and a classic scroll at encircling the foot. The interior is decorated with a central medallion enclosing a five-clawed dragon writhing around a flaming pearl, below a band of florets and leafy clusters at the rim. The base is inscribed with a six-character ‘Da Ming Wanli nianzhi’ 大明萬曆年製 reign mark within a double circle.

SIMILAR EXAMPLE

The scene on the cup may pertain to the ancient legend of Xiwangmu 西王母 (“Queen Mother of the West”) presenting peaches to Emperor Wudi 漢武帝 in the Han dynasty. Small wucai cups of this size from the Wanli period are particularly rare, as extant examples are usually of bowl form. See a wucai bowl painted with the same subject, formerly in the Toguri Collection and sold twice at Sotheby’s, once in London on 9th June 2004, lot 36 and more recently in Hong Kong on 13th October 2021, lot 3643.

PROVENANCE

A Japanese Private Collection

明萬曆      五彩道教人物圖杯

「大明萬曆年製」款