Scroll Pot with Drunken Scholars
CultureChinese
OriginJingdezhen, China
PeriodQing dynasty (1644-1911)
Date19th century
MediumPorcelain with underglaze cobalt blue
DimensionsOverall: 19.5 × 37.8 cm (7 11/16 × 14 7/8 in.)
MarkingsBase makred with four character mark. "Ya Yu Tang Zhi" (Made in the Studio of Elegant Rain"
DescriptionThe exterior walls of this large circular pot are decorated with a continuous scene of Chinese scholars at a drinking party. The scene begins with a group of scholars in Ming dynasty dress sitting at a table covered with food dishes and wine goblets. Several large wine jars also rest on the floor beside the scholars. The scene continues to the right with more images of scholars walking around aimlessly in an apparent state of drunkenness. One scholar has collapsed on the ground and is being assisted by a young male servant. Other scholars still further to the right are being propped up by their servants as they stumble away. Bringing the scene back around to the table is a final group of scholars, one of whom is vomiting copiously on the ground while another makes faces at a fallen friend. The interior of the pot is glazed but undecorated. The base is unglazed except for a circle in the center that is inscribed with a four character mark reading yayutangzhi or “Made for Elegant Rain Hall.”
The drinking party portrayed here recalls many poems and stories from Chinese literature, without necessarily depicting a specific one. The linear style of the painting, plus the fact that the figures are wearing Ming-style clothes, suggests that the painter may have drawn inspiration from printed book illustrations of the late 16th and 17th centuries. The literary associations of the scene give it a patina of acceptability despite the debauched subject matter, and would have made this pot an appropriate furnishing for an affluent gentleman’s study. As in Western culture, many wealthy Chinese gave lyrical names to their estates, and even to specific buildings within their estates. The “Elegant Rain Hall” referred to on the bottom of the pot was probably the name of the original owner’s house or studio. “Elegant Rain Hall” was in fact used as a sobriquet by a famous 18th-century scholar named Lu Jianzeng (1690-1768) and appears on some porcelains commissioned by him. This pot was most likely produced after Lu’s death, but may have been a private commission made for one of his descendents.
The drinking party portrayed here recalls many poems and stories from Chinese literature, without necessarily depicting a specific one. The linear style of the painting, plus the fact that the figures are wearing Ming-style clothes, suggests that the painter may have drawn inspiration from printed book illustrations of the late 16th and 17th centuries. The literary associations of the scene give it a patina of acceptability despite the debauched subject matter, and would have made this pot an appropriate furnishing for an affluent gentleman’s study. As in Western culture, many wealthy Chinese gave lyrical names to their estates, and even to specific buildings within their estates. The “Elegant Rain Hall” referred to on the bottom of the pot was probably the name of the original owner’s house or studio. “Elegant Rain Hall” was in fact used as a sobriquet by a famous 18th-century scholar named Lu Jianzeng (1690-1768) and appears on some porcelains commissioned by him. This pot was most likely produced after Lu’s death, but may have been a private commission made for one of his descendents.
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object numberG11.2.1
Classifications
Asian CeramicsSub-classification
Chinese PorcelainCollections
Status
Not on view
Artist / Maker: Casa Pirota Workshop
1537
Object number: G83.1.351
Artist / Maker: Meissen Porcelain Manufactory
c.1725, decoration c.1728
Object number: G83.1.584
