Note: The Jiajing emperor is known to have been concerned with Immortality, hence many decorative motifs during his reign were associated with longevity. The precise meaning and origins of these fountains are unclear, but the motif appears to evoke the wish of extending life, or living forever. This theme is carried on by the mark on the base reading 'fu shou kang ning', which can be translated as 'wealth, long life, health and peace', implying almost that to drink from this ewer would extend one's own life and good fortune.

These ewers also found their way to Europe where they were appreciated for their exoticism. An oil painting in the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, by Willem Kalf, circa 1660, depicts a still life with a very similar blue and white ewer with the same motif (acc.no.1981.77).

A related blue and white ewer with similar motif, Xuande six-character mark, 16th century, is illustrated by J.Pope, Chinese Porcelains from the Ardebil Shrine, London, 1981, pl.99. Another similar blue and white ewer with the same motif is in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (acc.no.C.105-1928).

Ewer with underglaze blue decoration, 'wan fu you tong' mark, Ming dynasty, Jiajing period (1522-1566). Height: 30cm. Given from the Bloxam Collection, C.105-1928. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 2023

Compare with a related blue and white ewer with similar motif, Jiajing, which was sold at Bonhams London, 7 November 2019, lot 90. 

Lot 117. A rare blue and white 'Eight trigrams' ewer, Jiajing six-character mark and of the period (1522-1566); 15cm diam. Sold for £15,300 (Estimate £3,000 - 5,000). © Bonhams 2001-2023

The bulbous body rising from a spreading foot, painted around the exterior with a row of trigrams in circles surrounded by auspicious cranes in various positions amidst ruyi-shaped clouds, the six-character mark on the base arranged in a circle.

Provenance: Hans F. Goldstein (1915-1985), and thence by descent.

Note: This lot and those offered at Bonhams London in May 2023 form the remaining collection of H. F. Goldstein, an earlier part of which was sold at Bonhams Hong Kong and London in 2015-2016. Hans Goldstein's work during the 1950s took him to all parts of the Far East and this in turn stimulated his interest in Oriental art and in particular Chinese porcelain. His collection developed gradually and initially concentrated on inside-painted snuff bottles. As he became more knowledgeable, he began to collect blue and white porcelain and other Chinese ceramics and works of art. He came to London in the mid-1960s and continued to collect by regularly visiting art dealers and the main auction houses in London.

Footed Bowl, Ming dynasty (1368–1644), Jiajing mark and period (1522–66). Porcelain painted in underglaze blue. H. 11.4 cm. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Gift of Stanley Herzman, in memory of Adele Herzman, 1991 (1991.253.49).

The Jiajing emperor was an enthusiast of Daoist rituals and ceramic wares with the 'Eight Trigrams motifs' related to Daoism, were particularly favoured. See a very similar blue and white footed bowl, Jiajing mark and period, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (acc.no.1991.253.49) (above). Compare also with a similarly-shaped blue and white jar, Jiajing mark and of the period, illustrated in Enlightening Elegance. Imperial Porcelain of the Mid to Late Ming. The Huaihaitang Collection, Hong Kong, 2012, pp.154-155.