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Plate with Isle of the Immortals

1723–35
(1723-35)
porcelain decorated in underglaze cobalt blue and overglaze enamels
Diameter: 21.2 cm (8 3/8 in.)
The Fanny Tewksbury King Collection 1956.709
Location: not on view
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Description

This multicolored dish is decorated with the sacred isle, also seen on the exterior of the blue-and-white dish nearby. A pavilion emerges amid rising and falling waves, a symbol of constant transformation and change. Above the waves are mysterious clouds, symbolizing the cosmic vital energy (qi) that animates all things and beings on earth in Daoism. The interior of the dish also shows cranes carrying sticks in their beaks, a motif that symbolizes longevity. Cranes carrying sticks above a pavilion in the sea express the wish “May you live to a ripe old age (haiwu tianchou; 海屋添籌).”
Plate with Isle of the Immortals

Plate with Isle of the Immortals

1723–35

China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen kilns, Qing dynasty (1644-1911), Yongzheng mark and reign (1723-35)

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