Lot 40 A rare Chinese blue and white wall kendi with a zoomorphic spout, Hatcher Cargo

A rare Chinese blue and white wall kendi with a zoomorphic spout, Hatcher Cargo

Chongzhen/Shunzhi

未知

€ 8.000 – € 12.000

WH: H. 18,7 cm, W. 10,5 cm, D. 10,2 cm

未知

The reverse is flat and pierced with a small aperture, indicating that this unusual kendi was intended to be hung. The globular body, raised on a short foot and rising to a tall waisted neck with a bulbous section that gradually flares into a curved rim, is finely painted in underglaze cobalt blue with flowering branches, bamboo sprigs, and a single small flying insect. Emerging from the body is an unusual zoomorphic spout with an alert expression and clearly defined contours, surrounded by a hatched decoration resembling a mane. The neck of the kendi is further decorated with pendent banana leaves, while the bulbous section beneath the rim is decorated with floral scrolls below a zigzag border.
Kendi of this highly distinctive form are exceptionally rare as only four examples have been recorded, all recovered by Captain Michael Hatcher from a Chinese junk in the South China Seas.
The combination of transitional floral decoration and the whimsical animal-head spout reflects the experimental character of late Ming export porcelain produced for the Southeast Asian and Dutch markets during the mid-seventeenth century.
器背平坦，並開一小孔，顯示此件造型特殊的軍持原可懸掛使用。器身呈圓鼓形，下承矮足，上接高束頸，頸部中段凸起，向上漸次外撇形成弧形口沿。通體以釉下青花精繪折枝花卉、修竹及一隻飛蟲。腹部一側伸出罕見的獸首形流，神態警覺，輪廓清晰，周圍以細密斜線描繪，形似鬃毛。頸部飾垂蕉葉紋，口沿下方的凸起部位環繪纏枝花卉，其上飾折線紋。
此類特殊造型的軍持極為罕見，目前僅見四件，均由邁克爾・哈徹船長（Captain Michael Hatcher）自南中國海一艘中國沉船中打撈出水。
過渡期花卉紋飾與奇趣的獸首形流相結合，體現十七世紀中葉晚明外銷瓷勇於創新的藝術風格。此類器物主要面向東南亞及荷蘭市場，造型兼具異域趣味與實用功能。
Provenance:
Christie's Amsterdam, 14 March 1984, 'Fine And Important Late Ming And Transitional Porcelain, Recently Recovered from an Asian Vessel in the South China Sea. Property of Captain Michael Hatcher', lot 52. (see added scans)
Jorge Welsh, London/Lisbon, with their label to the rear.
The Mr. and Mrs. Baert-Devos Collection, Belgium. Acquired from the above in 2003, accompanied by a copy of their documentation folder. (see added scans)
Published:
Colin Sheaf, Richard Kilburn, 'The Hatcher Porcelain Cargoes. The Complete Record', p. 68, pl. 101.