Jingdezhen ware
(China)
Moonflask with design of dragon, clouds and waves
- Other titles:
- Moonflask with a design on each side of a dragon and a flaming pearl
- Location
- Lower Asian gallery
- Further information
A red front-facing dragon ascends from ocean waves, surrounded by scrolling clouds appearing like tongues of flame. Scrolling clouds are also shown emanating from the body of a dragon and from the pearl he chases. Clouds are among the earliest and continuously invoked auspicious symbols in Chinese art. The mystical 'cloud force' was believed to be a vehicle of the immortals. The benevolent rain-bearing dragon represents the authority and power of the imperial throne; the clouds and the waves symbolise two basic elements of the universe.
Asian Art Department, AGNSW, January 2012
- Place of origin
-
Jingdezhen,
Jiangxi Province,
China
- Period
- China: Qing dynasty 1644–1911, Qianlong 1736–1795
- Year
- 1736-1795
- Media
- Ceramic
- Medium
- porcelain with underglaze blue and copper red
- Dimensions
- 30.5 x 26.0 x 12.5cm
- Credit
- Purchased 1964
- Accession number
- EC1.1964
