1507 A A B&W double handles vase with figures

Item#: 1507

Name: A B&W double handles                                vase with figures 

Date: Ming/Hong-Zhi

Size: 40.6 CM in height 

No. 24: Blue-and-White Narrative Vase with Elephant-Head Handles (Collection No. 1507)
Thematic Interpretation: “Hongzhi Remembering His Mother” (Provisional Title)

This blue-and-white vase presents an enigmatic narrative through two palace scenes that are separate yet interconnected. On one side, a crowned man with delicate features sits upright before a screen, his hands tucked into his sleeves and folded below his abdomen. Smiling gently, he gazes slightly to his left, his composed posture suggesting that he is awaiting someone’s arrival. Beyond his line of sight, a woman approaches, escorted by a man who appears to be a servant. The servant respectfully extends both hands as he leads the way. This seems to be a previously arranged meeting, perhaps concerning a matter of importance to both parties. What they are about to discuss, however, is likely not a great affair concerning the rise or fall of the state, but a private romantic relationship.

On the other side of the vessel, a tall, full-figured woman who appears to be the mistress of the household also sits turned to one side, her hands tucked into her sleeves and her expression stern. Before her, a male servant considerably smaller in stature bends low, apparently reporting something with the utmost deference. Judging from her solemn expression, the news is unlikely to please her.

The cobalt pigment, its tonal qualities, and the decorative style of this vase most closely resemble the characteristics of blue-and-white porcelain from the Chenghua to Hongzhi reigns of the Ming dynasty. If this assessment is sound, our next question is: during the forty-one years spanning these two emperors’ reigns, what distinctive event in palace history might correspond to the story conveyed by these two scenes?

Born in 1470, the future Hongzhi Emperor was the Chenghua Emperor’s third son. Under ordinary circumstances, he would not have been first in line to become crown prince. His eldest brother, however, had died in 1467, before he was born. His second brother, born in 1469 and subsequently named crown prince, also died in childhood, in 1472. By then, the future Hongzhi Emperor was already two years old, yet the Chenghua Emperor remained unaware of his existence. It was not until 1475 that Chenghua happened to discover that he had a third son.

Why had the Chenghua Emperor been kept in the dark for more than five years, unaware that he already had a third son? The principal reasons evidently lay in the mother’s humble origins and the hostile conditions within the palace. Hongzhi’s mother, Lady Ji, was an ordinary palace maid whose intelligence and quick wit won Chenghua’s favor. She gave birth to Zhu Youcheng, the future Hongzhi Emperor. According to the relevant historical accounts, mother and son lived from the time of his birth under the shadow of jealousy and threats from Imperial Consort Wan, Chenghua’s beloved consort, facing the constant danger of being murdered. Against this hostile background, it becomes understandable that a clandestine alliance within the palace—comprising a deposed empress dowager, palace maids, and eunuchs—would have secretly concealed and protected the mother and child until 1475.

The scene depicted on this blue-and-white vessel may very well represent an episode connected with Chenghua’s recognition of Zhu Youcheng as his son that year. The woman in the painting would thus be Lady Ji. Guided by a servant, she approaches the Chenghua Emperor, suggesting that the identities of mother and son, concealed for so many years, have finally been acknowledged. Her son can now rightfully become crown prince. This is, of course, good news.

The other scene may be the artist’s veiled depiction of the tragic conclusion to the other half of this story: someone secretly informs Imperial Consort Wan of the circumstances surrounding the reunion of Chenghua and his son. The outcome follows in that same year, 1475. Shortly after Hongzhi is acknowledged by his father, his mother, Lady Ji, dies suddenly in the palace under unexplained circumstances.

Soon after ascending the throne in 1487, Hongzhi began bestowing substantial posthumous honors upon his birth mother, Lady Ji. He also searched far and wide for her relatives, hoping to grant them advancement and generous rewards. Regrettably, these efforts never fulfilled his wishes. This blue-and-white work may very well be associated with his efforts to honor his mother and celebrate her maternal devotion, serving as an expression of his remembrance of her.

Of the two scenes, one suggests the hopeful turning point and joy of an identity finally acknowledged; the other carries the shadow of approaching danger. Beneath the seemingly peaceful harmony of palace life, family affection and intrigue, human nature and power become intertwined, while the existing balance quietly unravels. Perhaps without fully intending to do so, the artist has preserved for us a small yet deeply moving episode among the countless similar stories of joy and sorrow, separation and reunion, that fill the long course of history.