Lot 3. A rare blue and white documentary 'kui xing' vessel. Dated to the Jiawu year, corresponding to 1654 and of the period; 22.1cm (8 3/4in) diam. Sold for £63,300. © Bonhams 2001-2022

Superbly potted with gently curving walls rising to a flat lipped rim, painted around the exterior in underglaze blue with Kui Xing holding a brush and silver ingot riding a cloud above swirling waves, his scarves billowing in the wind, the north-star constellation in the sky along with a square dou measure, calligraphic inscription. 

Provenance: Berwald Oriental Art, London, 4 November 2014.

Note: Identified by the writing brush held in his raised hand and his iconic 'back-kick' posture, Kui Xing 魁星 ('Chief Star') is a Daoist deity worshipped to obtain academic success. It would therefore, have been extremely auspicious for a scholar to have his items decorated with this figure, to inspire him in his writing and achieve examination success.

The Chinese character Kui (魁) is composed of the ideograph for 'demon' (鬼) and the ideograph for 'ladle' (斗). The ladle or 'dipper' (as Kui Xing is also associated with the North Star) is depicted on the present lot in the form of a square vessel floating above the waves. Kui Xing is often portrayed with a demonic appearance, a hideous face, a horn-like protuberance on his head, and a sinewy body. According to legend, he was once a mortal scholar with outstanding literary skills but was repeatedly failed in the civil service examinations due to his repulsive appearance. Out of frustration and humiliation, Kui Xing threw himself into a river, where he was saved by a mythical monster called an ao. He then ascended to the Big Dipper and became the stellar patron of the literati and the God of Literature.

Dreaming of Kui Xing the night before the exams was considered an auspicious sign and the candidate who obtained the highest results, known as the First Scholar (zhangyuan), would walk first on a staircase decorated with the ao mythical beast. Representations of Kui Xing and Ao are thus a symbol of literary success and highest achievement at the Imperial examinations.

The other side is with a calligraphic inscription in three lines:

北極之象，太陰之精
鍾英毓秀，翼我文明
甲午春日寫於花前解貂

Which may be translated as:

The image of the polestar
and the essence of the Moon
Concentrate what's special, nurture what's refined
and advance the brilliance of literary culture
Written on a Spring day in the Jiawu year (1654) before flowers and undoing fur.

Of particular interest is the last line: 'before flowers and undoing fur', encapsulating the changing season from winter to spring when one sheds warmer clothes for lighter ones. It hints at the Jin dynasty official Ruan Fu, who is said to have exchanged his expensive furs for cheap wine. He was impeached by officials but was pardoned by the emperor. The term 'exchanging gold and fur for wine' became a metaphor for unfettered pleasure and individuality, characteristics admired by late Ming literati.

Bonhams. THE MARSH COLLECTION ART FOR THE LITERATI, 3 November 2022, London, New Bond Street