Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons License
Flask with Dragons
(China )
This moonflask of white porcelain is painted with underglaze blue and red designs. A five-clawed red dragon is depicted on either side, facing forward with its body coiled to protect a flaming pearl at the center. Flames issue from the scaly serpentine body of the dragon. In blue are painted the foaming crested waves along the bottom and scrolling clouds scattered across the sky. The flask is round in form, thus giving it the name full moon flask. Two thin handles are attached at the shoulders and rise to meet the straight narrow neck. The careful control of the cobalt (blue) and iron (red) pigments mark this vase as something rare and special. It was made at the imperial kilns in the city of Jingdezhen for the court in Beijing where it would have served as decoration for one of the many palace rooms in the Forbidden City.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object. Learn more about provenance at the Walters.
William T. or Henry Walters Collection, Baltimore, prior to 1899 [mode of acquisition unknown]; by bequest to Walters Art Museum, 1931.
Exhibitions
| 1980-1981 | Masterpieces of Chinese Porcelain. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
| 2025 | Imperial Chinese Treasures from the Walters Collection. 1991-0. |
Geographies
China, Jiangxi, Jingdezhen (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 12 3/4 × W: 10 1/4 × D: 2 5/16 in. (32.4 × 26 × 5.8 cm)
Credit Line
Bequest of Henry Walters, 1931
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
49.1632