The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of February 1, 2023

Bowl with Decoration of the "Three Friends"

1426–1435

China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen, Ming dynasty (1368-1644), Xuande mark and reign

(1426-1435)

Porcelain with underglaze blue decoration

Diameter: 30.2 cm (11 7/8 in.); Overall: 11.2 cm (4 7/16 in.)

John L. Severance Fund 1953.631

Location

238 Chinese Ceramics

Description

Pine, bamboo, and plum blossom are known as the “Three Friends” of winter as metaphors of the scholar-gentleman’s ideal of integrity, endurance, loftiness, and purity.

Inscriptions

Inscription

大明宣德年製

Inscription Translation

'Da Ming Xuande nianzhi'

Citations
The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 864 archive.org
The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 266 archive.org
The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 266 archive.org
The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 353 archive.org
Exhibition history

The Arts of China from The Cleveland Museum of Art, Mansfield Art Center Feb. 27-April 10, 1983

"Bones of Jade, Soul of Ice: The Flowering Plum in Chinese Art," Yale University Art Gallery, April 17-June 30, 1985; St. Louis Art Museum, Sept. 6 - Nov. 3, 1985

Chinese Paintings: Themes and Techniques. The Cleveland Museum of Art (February 7-March 29, 1981).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1953.631