143.
A ‘FAMILLE VERTE’ BALUSTER VASE, YEN YEN
Qing dynasty, Kangxi period
44,5 cm high
Provenance: Naples, Villa della Floridiana, Museo Duca di Martina, Placido de Sangro (1829-1891) collection.
inv. n. 3977.
The luxuriant decoration on this vase, with pheasants and peacocks amidst rocks and flowers of different species, is further enhanced by coats of gold to enlighten the already brilliant tones of the polychrome enamels. This characteristic could be appreciated on a yen yen vase of similar size but with a decoration of lotuses in the Palace Museum, Beijing (Kangxi Yongzheng Qianlong. Porcelain from the Palace Museum Collection, Hong Kong 1989, pl. 406).
Peacocks (kongque) and pheasants (zhi) are among the most admired birds in Chinese traditional culture, because of their elegance and beauty. They both are used as official badge insignia, the first for the third and fourth civil servant rank and the second for the first and second rank. Furthermore, the feathers of the peacock are emblem of a high rank, usually inserted in a jade cylinder on the official hat. The pheasant exists in numerous species, the most valued being the golden pheasant (jinji).
