Covered Jar with Plum Blossoms
about 1662–1722
10 3/8 x 8 3/16 in. (26.35 x 20.8 cm)
Creation Place:
China
Medium:
Cobalt on porcelain
Credit Line:
Bequest of Charles Phelps Taft and Anna Sinton Taft
Accession Number:
1931.11a-b
Currently on View in:
Music Room (14)
Exhibition History
Cincinnati, Ohio. Taft Museum of Art. Color: Light to Palette, October 22, 1965 – December 6, 1965, possibly no. 23.
New York. China Institute Gallery. As You Wish: Symbol And Meaning On Chinese Porcelains From The Taft Museum, October 23, 1993–January 15, 1994.
Gallery Label
During the late 1800s, a craze for blue-and-white ceramics called “Chinamania” emerged in England. Collectors and artists—such as James McNeill Whistler—were especially captivated by the brilliant shades of blue and high quality of Kangxi porcelains. Interested buyers swiftly began to acquire vessels like these two covered jars. Crooked plum tree branches with delicate flowers enliven their surfaces. If you look closely, you will see a series of dark lines that represent melting ice. The ice, combined with flowering plum blossoms, signals the return of spring.
Provenance
Acquired by James W. Ellsworth, New York, NY. (Acquired by Parish-Watson, New York, NY); purchased by Charles Phelps Taft [1843-1929] and Anna Sinton Taft [1850-1931], Cincinnati, OH, November 9, 1923 [1]; donated to the Cincinnati Institute of Fine Arts, Cincinnati, OH, May 21, 1927 [2]; transferred to the Taft Museum of Art, Cincinnati, OH, September 1, 2006 [3].
Notes:
[1]. According to invoice, “cover repaired” and “as far as our records show there are 44 pieces of this quality known.” See Taft Museum of Art vendor file. [2]. The Cincinnati Institute of Fine Arts (CIFA) was formed by Charles Phelps and Anna Sinton Taft on March 22, 1927 as a non-profit corporation to stimulate the development of art and music in the City of Cincinnati and run the Taft Museum of Art, which opened in 1932. The Tafts offered $1 million for a permanent endowment fund, on the condition that the community raise $2.5 million in matching funds, which was achieved by December 3, 1928. [3]. Until August 31, 2006, the Museum was owned by CIFA, administered by CIFA’s Board of Trustees, and governed by the Taft Museum Board of Overseers. On September 1, 2006, the Museum legally separated from CIFA and began operations as its own incorporated 501(c)(3) entity. This separate incorporation led to the transfer to the separate entity after August 31, 2006 of all tangible assets comprising the Taft collection.
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