Creative Commons License
Blue and White Bottle with Scenes from a Novel
(China )
This bottle shaped vase with a bulge in the neck is an example of export porcelain to Holland. It represents both domestic and foreign designs and tastes, including Chinese images and decorations that cater to a Dutch market. The body is painted with a scene from the Chinese novel "Romance of the Three Kingdoms". The character Liu Bei is depicted at the moment his piebald horse vaults him over the River Tan to safety. Pursing him are the conspirators that have planned to kill Liu Bei during a banquet. The landscape of trees and a crenellated wall obscured by a white mist set the scene for the chase. The neck of the vase is decorated with Arabesque tulip motifs, a response to the Dutch attraction to tulips.
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 [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; by bequest to Walters Art Museum, 1931.
Exhibitions
| 1980-1981 | Masterpieces of Chinese Porcelain. The Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore. |
Conservation
| Date | Description | Narrative |
|---|---|---|
| 11/4/1974 | Treatment | cleaned |
Geographies
China (Place of Origin)
Measurements
H: 15 5/16 × Diam: 7 7/8 in. (38.9 × 20 cm)
Credit Line
Acquired by William T. or Henry Walters
Location in Museum
Not on view
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.
49.1510