A blue and white double-gourd 'Eight Daoist Immortals' vaseMark and period of Wanli明萬曆 青花群仙獻壽圖大葫蘆瓶 《大明萬曆年製》款the mouth with a six-character mark in underglaze blue within a rectangular cartouche, wood stand, Japanese wood box (4)Height 18¾ in., 47.7 cm来源: Description A blue and white double-gourd'Eight Daoist Immortals' vaseMark and period of Wanli明萬曆 青花群仙獻壽圖大葫蘆瓶 《大明萬曆年製》款the mouth witha six-character mark in underglaze blue within a rectangular cartouche, wood stand, Japanese wood box (4)Height 18¾ in., 47.7 cmCondition reportFor more information on and additional videos for this lot, please contactserina.wei@sothebys.com.Catalogue noteThe present vase is impressive for its large size, robust potting and dynamic painting. To the lower bulb, theEight Daoist Immortals are vividly painted. Dressed in billowing robes and separated by cloud scrolls, the immortals are shown carrying auspicious objects or vessels and depicted in motion as if parading after one another. The upper section shows a seated Shoulao under a pine tree, accompanied by Liuhai with his three-legged toad and other attendants. Imbued with auspicious Daoist imagery, the vase is a well-wishinggift for long life and success. Thedouble-gourd shape of the present lot is also symbolic: it representslongevityand is associatedwith the Daoist Immortal Li Tieguai who isdepictedholding a double-gourd containing a magic potion to the lower section.Extremely rare, the present vase has a six-character mark to the mouth rim. See a closely related example, of the same form and motif, but with Xiwangmu (Queen Mother of the West) depicted to the upper section and without a mark,in the National Palace Museum, Taipei (accession no.故瓷008087N000000000).The combination of the Eight Immortals motif and the double-gourd form finds its inspiration in blue and white vases that were popular duringthe reign of Wanli’s grandfather, the Jiajing Emperor, who was a devote Daoist. For Jiajing marked examples of a slightly larger size, see one, previously in the collection of J. Piermont Morgan, illustrated inCatalogue of The Morgan Collections of Chinese Porcelains,New York, 1907, no. 243 and sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 7th October 2006, lot 918; another, in the British Museum, London, illustrated inJessica Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, pl. 9:36.