【文藏論談】世人知道成化雞缸杯的高貴，未必瞭解成化宮碗的典雅！成化宮碗何以能夠從區區30塊大洋到獲得超過億元天價的至尊地位？今天一起來聊

Today, let’s talk about a very tasteful and niche artifact from the Chenghua Dynasty, the "Chenghua Palace Bowl". Speaking of the famous items of Chenghua Dynasty, it is certain that most people will first think of the famous chicken cylinder cup, which has a transaction record of 280 million yuan, and the so-called "Shenzong fashion food. There is a pair of Chenghua color chicken cylinder cups in front of the palace, which is worth 100,000 yuan." "A lot of people recite it easily. But if you want to ask what is the most elegant porcelain designed by Chenghua? I will answer without hesitation: Chenghua Qinghua Palace Bowl. Speaking of the Chenghua Palace bowl, there is a British nobleman who must mention, that is, Lord Rolf Cunliffe , the former honorary director of the Oriental Art Department of the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge. When I talked about the Zhanggongxiang Kiln, I mentioned the "Alexander Bowl" which is well-known overseas. In fact, there is also the "Kenriff Bowl" overseas, which is also famous, referring to the "Chenghua Palace Bowl" he has collected. Rolf Cunliffe was born in 1899 and died in 1963. The title of Lord Kenreff has been in the UK for three generations. We are talking about Ralph Kenreff as the second-generation Lord. He is one of the most influential Chinese art collectors overseas. His collection includes artifacts from various dynasties, including ancient bronzes, jade, snuff bottles, and porcelain. When he died in 1963, he had more than 600 pieces in his collection, and his collection of Ming Dynasty official kiln porcelain was outstanding. Lord Cunliffe bought three palace bowls from Peter Boode for £475 in 1947. Boode also the beginning of the last century, the famous antique dealers of East Asian art at the time of the United Kingdom belonging to a senior expert of Oriental Art from 1913 began to get involved in Chinese antiques, collecting in the early Republic of China to a large number of art treasures, and then in London in 1934, when Monte An antique shop was opened on Mount Street and closed in 1949 when the international situation changed drastically. Lord Cunliffe bought three palace bowls from Peter Boode. One is an okra palace bowl, and the other two palace bowls are paired with lily patterns. The three Chenghua palace bowls of his were later auctioned. The market used to be a big hit. Two Cunliffe palace bowls with painted lily patterns were sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong on May 20, 1980; the other was sold at London Powerlong, or Bonhams, for £820,000 in 2002. At that time , it was equivalent to tens of millions of RMB, which caused a great sensation. It is now in the Xiling Collection. The most eye-catching performance of the three bowls is the Okra Palace Bowl, which was valued at £25,000 at the London Antiques Fair in 1971, and first appeared in auctions on the 20th anniversary of Sotheby’s Hong Kong in 1981. It was only palace bowl valuation of HK $ 3-4 million, the transaction price to HK $ 4,070,000, think about today at every turn over hundreds of millions of enamel artifacts in the price of the year only a few hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars only, such as in April 2018 Sotheby’s Hong Kong bought a 238 million Hong Kong dollar Kangxi enamel bowl. The transaction record in 1986 was only 496,000 Hong Kong dollars, which was about 1/8 of the price of "Cunliffe Chenghua Palace Bowl." In 2013, Sotheby’s Hong Kong, this The Chenghua Kenriff Palace bowl, which only depicts the okra pattern, created the highest record of the Ming Dynasty official kiln blue and white bowl of 141 million Hong Kong dollars. This record has been maintained until April 5, 2017, when a Xuande blue-and-white fish algae pattern ten The prismatic bowl set a new record of 229 million Hong Kong dollars before it was considered to be broken. I was fortunate to have seen this treasure of Chenghua when I participated in the auction in Hong Kong that year . It is no exaggeration to say that its craftsmanship, quality of glaze, blue and white hair color, Painters and designers can take the lead; therefore, the "Kenriff Palace Bowl" is now well-known in overseas collectors, and in the world of Chinese antiques, the supreme status of Chenghua Palace Bowl has been established. It is generally believed that the "Kenriff Palace Bowl" has been established. The palace bowl was a variety created during the Xuande period and was used in the imperial palace. In the Chenghua dynasty , due to the outstanding quality and elegant design of such blue and white bowls of Chenghua , the “Chenghua palace bowl” has almost become a proprietary name. Refers to the "Chenghua Blue and White Palace Bowl." Former Sofu Asia Chairman Julian Thompson (Julian Thompson), who likes to call him Zhu Tangsheng in China, has been devoted to the research of Chenghua porcelain for a long time. He published "Chinese Porcelain-Zhuang" in 2009. "The Shaosui Collection" said: "A variety of Chenghua blue and white bowls landed in Europe in the 1930s and gained the elegant name of "gong bowls"..." According to this clue, I found that " Chenghua palace bowl "introduced the first overseas visible BRAND Gordon (AD Brankston) book" the early Ming Guan test "(early Ming Wares of Chingtechen) . he comes from a former Dalai Wu Xi introduced in the book collection the Chenghua The Hemerocallis Palace bowl said: "The Palace Bowl" should be a food utensil used in the palace, and their decorations are generally flowers and fruits, without dragon text." Brand's Dender's work was first published in 1938, it should be It was after the publication of his book that the name "Chenghua Palace Bowl" began to spread overseas. "Chenghua Palace Bowl" belongs to a kind of palace blue and white tableware with extremely elegant design and only for royal use. Because it is extremely outstanding and rare in the world, its shape, glaze, blue material, and painter have reached the pinnacle level, especially its simple and beautiful design, unique style, representing another incomparable after Yongxuan blue and white. The peak of blue and white porcelain has therefore become the object of pursuit by later collectors; its shape is slightly lip, curved belly, shallow- looped feet , and its size and shape are relatively fixed. The height is within 7cm, and the caliber is within 14.5-15.5cm. The bottom diameter is about 5.5cm, and the decoration adopts the technique of double hooks and rendering, with rich layers and delicate lines. According to the Ming Dynasty Wang Shixing’s "Guangzhi Yi", “then the two kilns were all sent to paint by the people of the Temple Central Painting Academy at the time.” That is to say, the decorative designs on Chenghua porcelains were all made by the court painters. From the physical point of view, This is true. The decorations of the "Chenghua Palace Bowl" are divided into two types: Mangong and plain white on the inner wall; most of the decoration layout is very sparse and bright. The bowl decorated with gardenia has many lotus petal patterns on the lower part of the abdomen. There are imitations in the Yongzheng period, which are very similar. Chenghua porcelain began to be re-fired about 4 years ago in Chenghua. According to custom, the new emperor of the Ming Dynasty had the tradition of suspending the firing of porcelain to show the emperor's grace. The edict for the first year of Chenghua’s ascension included in the "Records of Ming Xianzong" contains the following: "Raozhou Prefecture, Jiangxi, Chuzhou Prefecture, Zhejiang Province saw the internal officials burning and making magnets there. The edicts will be burned until the day, except for those who have been burned out. solution unfinished by Xi Jie stop, even if the difference between the Commission officials returned to Beijing, the crime of offenders ...... Seneschal utensils and feeding livestock barrels .... and other pieces from Tianshun five years ago and learned who owed unfinished free " This record clearly shows that the firing of porcelain was stopped in the first year of Chenghua, and the issue of firing was not mentioned again until the 4th year of Chenghua: "Daming Huidian Volume 194 Gongbu Pottery" has a record: " Chenghua " In the fourth year of Hua (1468), the porcelain of Guanglu Temple was still reduced according to the four-point rule.” According to archaeological excavations, the academic circles now divide Chenghua official kiln porcelain into three phases: the first phase was four years before Chenghua. The second phase is from Chenghua four years to Chenghua seventeen years, and the third phase is from Chenghua seventeen to twenty-three years. For Chenghua blue and white porcelain, it is divided into two categories: the first category basically covers products from the early to mid-Chenghua period. The blue and white materials are imported Su Ni Ma Qing with iron rust spots, and they have not been separated from the Xuande mortar. The style of the utensils is obvious. Inherited from Xuande; the second category of blue and white Zichenghua products from 16 to 23 years, the porcelain manufactured represents Chenghua's true craftsmanship. During the middle and late stages of Emperor Chenghua’s reign, he was fond of alchemy. Wan Zhen’er , 19 years older than him, was named a noble concubine in 2 years of Chenghua. At this time , he was extremely favored. In order to satisfy Wan Guifei’s extravagant life needs, Emperor Chenghua kept taking it. The national treasury used to fill the shortage of internal money, and the eunuch was abused, and the government gradually became barren. But it was during this period that the superstitious and weak emperor Chenghua was much inferior in governing the country compared to the beginning of his ascension, but like Li Yu, the post-lord of the Southern Tang Dynasty, and Song Huizong, the king of the Northern Song Dynasty, because of his extraordinary achievements in art. Shining in the annals of history. This time instead of green materials Jiangxi Leping as the "equal green" materials, blue and white coloring is no longer strong Xuan Deqing flower green, features sparkling iron plaque, but elegant pale, elegant calm due to improvements in technology, Chenghua The porcelain body is white and delicate, exceeding Xuande porcelain. The enamel is shiny and smooth, moist like jade, like gelatin. There are a few Chenghua palace bowls that I have experienced more than once. I really feel that this kind of "condensing fat like jade" is definitely not groundless. Some people call this kind of "condensing fat like jade" characteristic as waxy, and the glossiness of the visual experience is required. It is softer and gentler than Xuande, and its whiteness is higher than that of Xuande. Chenghua porcelain is visually whiter than Xuande porcelain, which is proved by scientific and technological testing. Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences had Zhushan Xuande formation samples, 1973 samples Chenghua Zhushan Chenghua late accumulation layer, two generations of porcelain glaze made of physical and chemical test results show that: in the Chenghua porcelain The iron oxide content is less than that of Xuande, and the aluminum oxide is higher than that of Xuande. Therefore, the Chenghua porcelain tire has a higher reactivity than Xuande, and its appearance is more white and dense. In the glaze, the iron oxide content of the Xuande ware is only 0.82%; the calcium oxide (mainly glaze ash) is 6.79% in the Xuande ware and 4.46% in the Chenghua ware; the two wares are formed under the reducing flame. In porcelain, the iron oxide melted in the glaze is less formed than in Xuande. Therefore, the mature porcelain of Chenghua is more delicate and whiter than that of Xuande. From the perspective of its glazed surface, the Chenghua Palace Bowl has the typical characteristics of the maturity period of Chenghua blue and white porcelain, and it is obviously the second phase of blue and white porcelain, the maturity period. There are roughly two theories about the production time of Chenghua’s blue and white palace bowls: one is from the late 1470s to the early 1480s; the other is only less than 10 years from 1480-1487. During this period, Chenghua porcelain was unique. It is generally believed that Concubine Wan Gui dominates. Concubine Wan, who has extremely high requirements for the quality of the porcelain made, caused huge costs to the imperial kiln factory and a heavy burden on the imperial court. The "History of the Ming Dynasty. The Benji of Xianzong" recorded many records of courtiers reporting to persuade and stop burning porcelain, such as : March of the 16th year of Chenghua: "With the year-long owe, reduce the supplies of Guanglu Temple." In August of the 18th year of Chenghua: "The deputy chief of the warehouse, please stop Raozhou to burn the imperial vessels." (" Ming History. Xianzong Benji) Twenty Years of Chenghua (1484): "The first month’s imperial contribution was reduced." The Ming History. Xianzong Benji was issued in the twenty-third year of Chenghua (1487) to stop "all urgent tasks". Order "Jiangxi Porcelain Burning Officer to Return to Beijing". These records show that the "Chenghua Palace Bowl" that appeared in the late Chenghua period in a few years was extremely short-lived, which explains why the "Chenghua Palace Bowl" is so rare. Compared with Liao Ruochenxing’s Northern Song Ru Kiln, the firing time of the "Chenghua Palace Bowl" may be shorter. In fact, the number of Chenghua palace bowls that survive today is far less than that of Ru kilns. According to my field observations and related data, most of the "Chenghua Palace Bowls" are collected in museum systems around the world, with Beijing and Taipei Palace Museum and the British Museum being the most. It is rare to collect in private hands and have the opportunity to enter the market. As we mentioned earlier, Chenghua Palace bowls are mainly flower patterns, but also melons and fruits. But among the many achievements on the palace bowl, the most prominent and original is the concise and lively sense of knots in its decorative design, which is very orderly but broken through changes in details. For example, in the Okra Palace Bowl sold for 140 million Hong Kong dollars in 2013, the composition of 4 okra and 4 leaves painted on the outer wall is very orderly and continuous, but the combination of one bud and another leaf breaks Order causes changes in order. Such a design means a height that has not been reached before, and this "design meaning" is reflected in other "Chenghua Palace Bowls". There are different opinions about how many styles of the Chenghua Palace Bowl were designed in the past. There are 11 kinds and 12 kinds. I probably summarize the main ones: the first is known as okra gumbo bowl yellow hollyhock, emerging patterns of the Ming Dynasty, Yongle is often painted in executive ampulla, and other ancillary patterns match. Now Chenghua palace bowl highest auction record is okra bowl, is in front of us talking about gumbo bowl Ken Lifu second is the lily bowl palace, in front of the Palace we have mentioned Ken Lifu another bowl of children are Lily There are also auction records for patterns, which will be discussed below. The third type is the blue and white hemerocallis palace bowl. It is a rare variety in the palace bowl and has an auction record. Sotheby's Hong Kong sold for HK$56.7 million in 2019. In the fourth type of gardenia, the ornamentation of this bowl has changed a little. There is a lotus petal pattern on the lower part of the abdomen, and it was imitated during the Yongzheng period. The shape is very similar, but it belongs to the current year of Yongzheng. There is also a passion flower pattern, or baolian. In the 16th year of Hongwu, the passion flower was designated for the royal use; "Tianshun 2nd year (1458), for officials and people, etc., clothing must not be used with python dragon... big passion flower" and other patterns . In the second year of Chenghua (1466), officials and people were not allowed to use clothing colors and patterns. Therefore, in the Ming Dynasty, the passion flower pattern was used exclusively by the court , and the court has repeatedly promulgated regulations prohibiting private use. Yet another is the patterns with floral decoration as well as treasure Scroll Blue and White Camellia pattern Bowl Palace in Beijing Forbidden City Palace include a collection of fruits and grain pattern of Guadie bowl, handed down only been twelve, including one excavated from Jingdezhen imperial Ming Dynasty repair parts kiln sites Chenghua palace bowl although it is famous, but in the Republic of China have suffered cold. The reason is that the Republic of China, the level of awareness for Chenghua blue and white porcelain is not comprehensive enough, a lot of people at that time thought Xuande and Chenghua blue and white porcelain close, green materials use imported materials, brilliant blue hair color, containing iron rust, for like Chenghua Palace bowls have elegant hair color, and the sparsely painted artifacts are considered to be imitations of the Yongzheng period in the Qing Dynasty. Large antique dealers when the Republic of China Chen Zhongyuan described in the "antique talking about old news" in a story that is very telling, it seems, and "Ken Lifu Palace Bowl" are linked. The story tells that there was an antique shop in Beijing Liulichang at the end of the Qing Dynasty, "Shanqizhai", which was financed by Prince Jin’s Mansion. Prince Jin was a very big one. There were two generations. The first generation Aixinjueluo Yizhen , Is the father of Emperor Guangxu. The second generation of Aixinjueluo Zaifeng is the fifth son of Yizhen and the biological father of Emperor Puyi of Xuantong. Because it is the royal family's exclusive business, there are many good things. Among them, a stack of transformed bowls has been on the shelf for 20 to 30 years. Many people regard them as imitations of Yongzheng, so no one cares about it. There are four pairs of bowls in this stack, eight, three of which are in poor condition. In the summer of 1931, one day, another antique shop called Yawenzhai Chen Zhongfu, who was Chen Chongyuan’s uncle, came to "Shanqizhai" and saw that the stack of Chenghua blue and white bowls had not been sold for so many years, so he asked the boss Yang Runzhai: "You stack of bowls, I will sell you a pair, how much is the reserve price?" Yang Runzhai told him: "You can give me 60 yuan for a pair. I don't care if you sell more and sell less. I don't care if you make more or less. It's yours." So Chen Zhongfu picked a good pair and took back Yawenzhai. At that time, there was an Englishman in Beijing, the one we mentioned at the beginning of Branston. This person was born in Shanghai, China in 1909. He returned to the UK to study at the age of 12, but was sent to China to study for 18 months in 1935, and 9 of them were Month in Beijing. Although it is not mentioned in Chen Chongyuan's book, judging by the time, it should be Brenshidun who returned to China. During his stay in Beijing, he happened to see the pair of Chenghua Qinghua Palace bowls at Yawenzhai . As a result, he said: "Chenghua blue and white, Yongzheng imitated a lot. Chen Zhongfu: "This pair of bowls is from Chenghua, please take a look, if it is really imitation of Yongzheng, I will eat it! " Branston held the bowl and looked around, then said: "You don't want to eat it, sell it to me for how much. " Chen Zhongfu offered 160 yuan, and after some bargaining, he sold it to Bran Shidun for 100 yuan. In return for Qi Zhai's capital of 60 yuan, Chen Zhongfu made a net profit of 40. At that time , he could buy more than one acre of land. The next day, Chen Zhongfu came to the "Appreciation Qizhai" again, and wanted to buy the remaining stack of bowls together with the good and the bad. The boss Yang Runzhai saw that the situation was not right, and immediately raised the price. Three pairs of bowls were both good and bad. The asking price was 200 yuan. Of course, Chen Zhongfu was not willing to talk about it. In the end, he bought the remaining six bowls for 150 yuan. As a result, Chen Zhongfu made a fortune from these six bowls: one pair was intact. The bowl was sold to the American Buchard for 300 yuan. Xiao Shunong, the manager of Yawenzhai, thought it was a good deal: I bought four pairs of Chenghua blue and white bowls, the cost was 210 yuan, the bill was 300 yuan, 90 yuan was earned, and four Bowls. On the eve of the Lugou Bridge Incident, Xiao Shunong sold one of the bowls to antique collector Yu Shouheng for 1,200 yuan . After the "Qiqi Incident", Yu Shouheng sold the Chenghua blue and white bowl to Ye Shuzhong for 3,000 yuan. Ye Shuzhong brought the Chenghua blue and white bowl to the United States and sold it for more than $10,000 in New York! Ya Wen Zhai able to save the other three Chenghua blue and white bowl disappeared, according to some research, which took one of the British White Lan Shidun 100 Ocean buy that pair is 2013 Sotheby's autumn auction hit a record one hundred million yuan The Okra Palace Bowl was won by senior art broker Zhai Jianmin, but the real buyer may be a real estate developer in Hebei. This story is more credible, because although Chen Chongyuan was writing a story, it was written by his uncle Chen Zhongfu, who had the opportunity to grasp the original information and avoided the tone change caused by hearsay. As mentioned earlier, Chenghua Palace Bowl is a record of a little bit of trading. Let me briefly introduce the transactions of Chenghua Palace Bowl in recent years.