Famille Verte - exhibitions international

107 - Lantern
China, first quarter of the 18th century
H. 16.8 cm, D. lantern 16 cm, D. base 16.9 cm
Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, inv. no. AK-RBK 15867
Formerly in the collection of R. May. Acquired by the State in 1944, transferred to the
Rijksmuseum in 1946
Hexagonal lantern or nightlight, the underside open, on a
separate flat base with a moulded plinth. The sides and flat
top pierced with vertical cartouches containing a roundel and
a swastika motif. Decorated in famille verte enamels on the
biscuit with flowers and dragons on a speckled ground, on top six
butterflies and flowers on a similar ground.
This lantern held a candle or oil lamp, the light of which shone
through the openings. Liang Yu describes a comparable lantern
as a ‘flower perfumer’, probably because scented oil was used.
According to Eberhard (refs.), the swastika is a very old form of
the character fang, meaning ‘the four regions of the world’. It has
become an emblem of immortality and infinity and is often used
as a decorative motif. The museum has a comparable, square
lantern (inv. no. RBK 15868). A closely related lantern is in the
Palace Museum, Beijing (ref. Li Zhiyan).
Publ.: Lunsingh Scheurleer 1972, pl. 129; Lunsingh Scheurleer
1985, no. 83; Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 212
Refs.: Honey 1927, pl. 57a; Hobson 1925/1928, vol. 5,
pl. XXVII-E139; Eberhard 1986, pp. 280–81; Beijing 1989,
p. 117, no. 100; Li Zhiyan 2010, p. 484
120
108 - Guanyin
China, early 18th century
H. 28.3 cm, base 20.5 x 9.2 cm
Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, inv. no. AK-NM 12467
Acquired from Gorer, art dealers, London, 1919, with the aid of the Rembrandt Society
Figure of Guanyin on a tall, moulded plinth, the front with
a pierced motif. The goddess, set against a semicircular
background of tall pierced rocks, is seated on a lotus flower
rising from the water, as indicated by curling waves. The head
and tail of a carp emerges from the water, a vase on a rock in
the middle. Acolytes on either side of Guanyin, one standing on
a lotus leaf, the other on a flower growing from the same plant.
Guanyin has a mandorla around her head, with bamboo growing
above it. Covered with aubergine, green and yellow enamels on
the biscuit. The museum has a similar, slightly smaller example
(inv. no. MAK 573).
This figure may have been made for a house altar, but it is also
possible that it was produced as part of the assortment of exotic
figures and groups for export to the West. The iconography of
Guanyin seated on a lotus is related to the representations of
the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara as Padmapani, ‘Lotus Hand’,
where he is shown with a lotus (padma) in one hand. Figures
of Guanyin in a cave often show her with two acolytes, namely
Shancai (‘Excelling in Riches’), a boy with folded hands; and
Longnu (‘Dragon Daughter’), a girl with a jewel or a peach on
a cushion (ref. Stein). The three-dimensional composition and
the finely moulded details make this an exceptional piece within
its category.
Publ.: Jörg & Van Campen 1997, cat. 204
Refs.: Lim 1978, no. 52; Stein 1986, p. 18