Document Description
| Object Name | A pair of yingqing (shadow blue) vases |
| Description | This pair of vases bears a flaring foliate-rim mouth, a long and waisted neck, sloping shoulders, and a compressed globular body. Their exterior and interior are in a yingqing* (shadow blue) glaze.
The overall exterior of each vase is decorated with incised and raised designs. One raised bowstring design decorates the center of the neck while two more thick designs are on the exterior of the footring. Four incised lines start from the top of the mouth and go to the bottom of the neck. Around the shoulders are two faintly incised designs. One depicts a tu or hare perching on the root of a tree while the other illustrates a lingzhi fungus surrounded by four leaves. Tu is perhaps one of the most popular of the Chinese animal emblems, and is usually found in the company of the Deer and Tortoise. Lingzhi fungus is an ingredient of the elixir of immortality and thus, a symbol of longevity. It resembles the ruyi (as you wish) scepter, or wish-fulfilling wand, popular in later Ming and early Qing art. When represented at the center of three or five blades of grass, it is a symbol of the greatest ritualistic importance. On the lower part of the compressed globular body both vases are adorned with moulded designs of stylized lotus petals. The lotus is a symbol of purity and integrity. It is also one of the eight precious Buddhist things. The lotus comes out of the mud, but remains itself unstained. It is inwardly empty yet outwardly upright. It has no branches (no family/offspring) yet smells sweet. On the base of the footring there are two faintly incised characters "xuan he", meaning the Xuanhe Era of the Huizong Reign, Northern Song dynasty (1119-1125).
Although both yingqing vases bear a Northern Song era name, it is evident that they are just copies of the Northern Song vessels because the genuine Song porcelain rarely bears a reign mark. The shape of both vases resembles more or less a green-glazed vase with a long neck and a flaring mouth dated to the mid-Qing period (p.202, from Li Zongyang's book titled zhongguo mingqing ciqi mulu <xia> <Catalogue of Chinese Ming and Qing Porcelain, vol.2) <Haikou: nanfang chubanshe, 2000>). Their shape also exhibits some similarity to no. C5, a small yellow-glazed garlic-head vase with two B-shaped handles and bowstring patterns in relief dated to the Daoguang reign (1821-1850). Therefore, this pair of yingqing vases was probably produced during the middle and late Qing dynasty.
* Yingqing (shadow blue) ware, also known as Qingbai ware (literally 'bluish white ware'), is an important porcelain produced in southern China during the Song and Yuan dynasties. Its glaze is bluish white with a jade texture and its best examples are so fine that one can see one's reflection in the lustrous glaze. This porcelain was invented in Jingdezhen during the Northern Song with the Hutian products being the most outstanding. The qingbai ware was also fired in the kilns in other southern provinces such as Anhui, Guangdong, Zhejiang and Fujian. The earliest known piece of bluish white ware is a bo bowl unearthed from a dated Northern Song tomb (A.D. 1000) in Jiujiang, of the Jiangxi province. Most common examples of these wares are daily utensils such as bowls, dishes, vases, jars, ewers, cup-stands, saucer dishes and censors. Many qingbai vessels are plain but some are decorated with carved or impressed designs, the most typical being the motif of 'children-at-play' employed by the Jingdezhen kiln. The quality of qingbai ware declined in the Yuan dynasty. Qingbai ware was extensively exported during the Song and Yuan periods. |
| Country of Origin | China |
| Medium | Porcelain, yingqing (shadow blue) glaze, moulded designs |
| Dimensions | Height 15.2 cm; Diameter at mouth 5.2 cm |
| Period | Attributed to the Qing dynasty
|
| Date Original | Late 18th to late 19th century; 1790s-1890s A.D. |
| Location Number | AA 77 |
| Classification | Porcelain
|
| Inventory Number | B84, B85 |
| Repository | Special Collections, Gettysburg College |
| Contact Information | http://www.gettysburg.edu/special_collections/contact.dot |
| Rights | Digital images copyright Special Collections, Musselman Library, Gettysburg College. All rights reserved. For permission information, see http://www.gettysburg.edu/special_collections/policies/copyright_information.dot |
