The cylindrical body is painted in underglaze blue with bands of scrolling floral motifs and geometric panels enclosing stylized floral medallions and lattice designs, below a short neck encircled by a wave band. The domed cover, decorated with matching geometric and floral ornament, is surmounted by a knop finial.
Private collection, Saratoga, California.
Overall good condition. For the specific condition, please refer to the detailed photos.
The blue and white zhuang jar was first developed by the imperial kilns of the Yongle period in the Ming dynasty. Its form was inspired by West Asian gold and silver vessels, making it a classic imperial porcelain shape born from the exchange between Chinese and foreign cultures. The present example is upright and dignified in form, with the cover fitting the jar precisely and a carved jewel-form knop at the top. The jar has a straight mouth, angled shoulders, a tall cylindrical body, and a subtly contracting lower section, creating a well-proportioned and refined silhouette. The body is finely potted, with a dense and delicate porcelain paste, while the glaze is lustrous, smooth, and warmly translucent in quality.
The vessel is decorated throughout in underglaze blue, with a clearly structured arrangement of designs. The neck is painted with crashing waves; the shoulder and lower body are encircled by scrolling floral bands. The main body and cover are decorated in a matching scheme, filled with continuous geometric brocade patterns. Within the brocade ground are plum blossoms, while scrolling lotus and wave motifs are interspersed in the surrounding spaces. The decoration is dense yet orderly, finely and meticulously executed. The cobalt blue is calm and elegant in tone, giving the piece a gentle and refined presence. It may be regarded as a fine archaistic work from the Qianlong imperial kilns.
During the Qianlong reign, the emperor greatly admired the spirit and style of Yongle and Xuande imperial porcelain. Yongle blue and white zhuang jars reserved on a white ground were particularly favored by the emperor. According to the Archives of the Workshops of the Imperial Household Department of the Qing Palace, the Qianlong Emperor repeatedly instructed Tang Ying, the superintendent of the imperial kilns at Jiujiang Customs, to produce zhuang jars of this type in the 10th, 11th, 13th, 14th, 15th, and 17th years of his reign, and he frequently inquired about their production.
On the seventeenth day of the second month in the seventeenth year of Qianlong’s reign, the emperor questioned: “Previously, orders were given to produce more unmarked ganlu vases and zhuang jars, and they were not required to be sent with the grand transport. Why have so few of these two types been made? Instruct Jiangxi to urgently produce unmarked examples… fifty zhuang jars… and send them here; they need not wait for the grand transport.” Following the imperial order, the kilns completed the production over twenty-one months in four separate batches. Once fired and sent to the capital, jars of this type were all ordered to be paired with zitan wood stands. Such special treatment was highly unusual among Qianlong imperial porcelain, demonstrating the elevated status of these vessels and their importance as court display objects. According to Qing court furnishing records, jars of this type were often displayed in imperial gardens and residences such as the Yuanmingyuan and the Rehe Palace, where they were reserved for the emperor’s appreciation and enjoyment.
Qianlong imperial zhuang jars made in imitation of Yongle and Xuande prototypes also have a distinctive feature: they were often left unmarked. The Qianlong Records note that on the fourteenth day of the intercalary seventh month in the thirteenth year of Qianlong’s reign, the eunuch Hu Shijie presented “one blue and white zhuang jar with cover on a white ground, accompanied by a zitan wood stand,” and conveyed the imperial order: “Instruct Tang Ying to reproduce it for use as hat stands; no reign mark is required.” The absence of a reign mark reflected a deliberate and reverent imitation of antiquity, in deference to the original Yongle and Xuande models.
Having survived to the present day, the present jar shows only minor old damage. It remains in fine condition, with an orthodox form and a clearly traceable imperial lineage, making it a work of considerable collecting importance.
青花壯罐始創(chuàng)於明永樂御窯，器形取法西亞金銀器皿，為中外文化交融之經典御瓷器式。本品器宇端挺，蓋罐嚴絲相合，蓋頂雕琢寶珠為鈕；罐身直口折肩，筒腹修直，下腹內斂轉折有度，器型規(guī)整雋秀。胎骨堅緻細膩，釉面瑩潤光潔，質感溫潤純粹。
通體以青花繪飾，紋飾排布層次井然：頸部繪海水波濤紋樣，肩、脛兩處環(huán)飾纏枝花卉；罐腹與蓋面紋飾一致，滿鋪連續(xù)幾何錦紋，錦地之內填繪梅花，隙間點綴纏枝蓮花與海浪紋樣。紋飾繁而不亂，描摹精工細緻，青花發(fā)色沉靜典雅，氣韻溫潤，堪為乾隆御窯仿古佳器。
乾隆一朝慕永宣御瓷風骨，永樂青花白地壯罐尤得帝王鍾愛。據《清宮造辦處各作成做活計清檔》所載，乾隆帝分別於十年、十一年、十三年、十四年、十五年、十七年，屢次諭令九江關督陶官唐英燒造此式壯罐，且頻繁過問督辦。其中乾隆十七年二月十七日，聖意詰問：「從前傳過無款甘露瓶並壯罐多燒造些，不必隨大運送來，如何此二樣燒造的甚少？著交江西急速燒造無款……壯罐五十件……送來，不必隨大運?！褂G奉旨，歷時二十一個月分四批完成燒製。且此類壯罐一經燒成送京，皆奉旨搭配紫檀木座，此種特殊禮遇於乾隆御瓷中殊為罕見，足見本品等級尊崇、陳設地位貴重。據清宮陳設檔記載，該式壯罐多陳設圓明園、熱河行宮等皇家苑囿，專供帝王清賞雅玩，恩寵可見一斑。
乾隆官窯仿永宣壯罐，另有鮮明特徵：本朝年款多不落器物?！肚∮浭聶n》有載：「乾隆十三年閏七月十四日，太監(jiān)胡世傑交青花白地有蓋壯罐一件（隨紫檀木座）傳旨：著唐英照樣燒造冠架用，不必落款?！共宦淠昕?，意在虔誠摹古，尊崇永宣原器風貌。
本品傳世至今，雖略有細微舊傷，然品相完好、制式正統(tǒng)、宮廷源流清晰，收藏價值彌足珍貴。
【來源】: 加州薩拉托加私人收藏
【品相】: 總體品相良好；具體品相請以細圖為準
【細圖鏈接】: 高清細圖鏈接：https://oag.smugmug.com/196-June-Chinese-DAY-2
【英文參閱】: See below references for similar items: Collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei, accession no. Gu-Ci 002304N000000000. China Guardian, Beijing, March 2019, lot 3520, with condition noted as: a hairline to the interior wall and a minor chip to the cover.
【中文參閱】: 相似藏品可參閱：國立故宮博物院館藏，編號故瓷002304N000000000；北京嘉德2019年03月拍賣，編號3520，品相：內壁有紋、蓋小磕。

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