4. Underglaze blue porcelain ‘three friends’ dish
Ming dynasty, Yongle period, 1403 - 1424
Diameter: 32.0cm
The grouping of bamboo, prunus and pine, known collectively as the ‘Three Friends of Winter’, is an enduring motif in China, found in painting, on porcelain and throughout the decorative arts. The bamboo was valued for its endurance, the ability to bend but not break while the pine, as another evergreen, was also seen as a symbol of fortitude. The prunus is one of the earliest flowering trees and was therefore associated with resilience and rejuvenation. Together, the three came to symbolize fortitude, hope and determination and by extension, the ideal qualities of a Confucian ‘scholar-gentleman’.
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View Blue and white porcelain from the Yuan and early Ming dynasties