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- 21 Circular Box
Ming dynasty; mid 16th century
d. 5.2 cm; The Reid Collection
The central motif on the lid of this small
box is the Daoist yin yang emblem, the
principle of dualism. This emblem signifies
the negative and positive principles of uni-
versal life. Yin symbolizes female, dark,
moon, and earth, while Yang stands for
male, light, sun, and heaven. Radiating
from this emblem are four blade-shaped
forms. On the edge of the rim are seven-
petalled flowers and leaves of tear-drop
shape. The colours include: red, white, yel-
low, green, and cobalt blue, on a turquoise-
blue ground.
22 Square Box
Ming dynasty, early 17th century
h. 3 cm; The Reid Collection
The design on the lid is of flowers sprout-
ing from an eroded rock. The sides are
decorated with simple floral designs. The
colours include: red, white, yellow, dark
green, light green, and cobalt blue, on a
greenish-turquoise ground.
23 Large Four-Sided Jar
Ming dynasty; early to mid 17th century
h. 37.5 cm; The Reid Collection
The shape of this large jar is copied from
an ancient ritual bronze vessel known as
the fanghu. The inside of the upper rim is
decorated with a squirrel and grapevine
pattern. The exterior of the jar is divided
by three narrow floral bands. Two sides of
the jar have a pictorial scene of a phoenix
flying over waves with a tree and rocks on
either side. The other two sides are deco-
rated with a peacock standing amidst
flowers near a tree. The neck of the jar
has elaborate pendant decorations. The
pendants over the phoenix have the yin
yang symbol. The splayed foot is decorated
with ponies galloping above crested waves.
The shoulders are ornamented with bronze
lion masks and ring handles. In all aspects,
this vessel is one of the finest ancient cloi-
sonne fanghu-shaped jars in existence.
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