Two Chinese Porcelain Blue And White Inscribed Dishes, Ko-sometsuke, Tianqi

A pair of inscribed blue and white ‘Wild Goose Pagoda’ dishes for the Japanese market, Ko-Sometsuke.
Ming dynasty, Tianqi Period (1621–1627).

The central scene depicts three geese standing in the foreground, with a fourth goose flying above them. Next to this scene appears a four-character inscription that can be translated as: “May your name be inscribed on the wall of the Wild Goose Pagoda in Chang’an.” In the distance, a promontory is shown with a pagoda and a nearby building.

Below this scene, painted upside down, is another four-line verse. This composition gives the impression of a reflection of the pagoda above. The text can loosely be translated as: “May you enjoy the Imperial Spring Banquet in the Apricot Grove.” Beside the inscription is a flowering apricot plant, with three swallows flying above it. The indented cavetto is decorated with a scrolling lotus motif set against a blue ground, while the outer border features a Greek key pattern on a pale blue background.

The first inscription, “May Your Name Be Inscribed on the Wall of the Wild Goose Pagoda in Chang’an,” refers to a tradition that began during the Tang dynasty (618–907). Candidates who successfully passed the highest level of the Jinshi civil service examinations were honored by having their names recorded on the wall of the Wild Goose Pagoda in Chang’an, the capital of the Tang empire.

The second inscription, “May You Enjoy the Imperial Spring Banquet in the Apricot Grove,” alludes to a celebratory banquet traditionally held near the Wild Goose Pagoda for those who had achieved success in the examinations. This message is further emphasized through a visual rebus that combines images of spring swallows with blooming apricot branches, both symbols associated with spring and scholarly achievement.

Diameter 21 cm.

Provenance:
Fa. A.C. Beeling & Zn., Leeuwarden, The Netherlands (sticker on one of the dishes)
Leegstra collection, Warffum, The Netherlands (sticker on both dishes)

Ref:
A similar dish is illustrated in Leaping the Dragon Gate: The Sir Michael Butler Collection of 17th-Century Chinese Porcelain (Katharine Butler, Teresa Canepa, 2021
Also see Four Centuries of Blue and White – The Frelinghuysen Collection of Chinese and Japanese Export Porcelain (Becky Macguire, 2023), p. 304, no. 248.
Another dish is in the Groninger Museum collection, object number 2018.0013.

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Inv. No: MW381