香港故宮文化博物館（博物館）於2024年7月開幕兩周年之際，全新專題展覽「流光彰色--故宮博物院藏明代陶瓷珍品」於7月10日正式揭幕，展期兩年。展覽由香港故宮文化博物館與故宮博物院聯合主辦，透過故宮博物院新一批借展的106件陶瓷珍品，聯同香港故宮文化博物館7件藏品，展現明代陶瓷工藝的發展演變和傑出成就。
展出珍品之一是青花雲龍紋天球瓶，明永樂年間燒製，高43.2釐米，口徑9.4釐米，足徑16.5釐米。清宮舊藏。
此瓶體大端正，圓口，直頸，侈口(口徑略大於瓶頸直徑)，腹渾圓，肩與底相若，俗稱“天球瓶”。通體青花紋飾，自上而下分為兩層。外口飾忍冬紋，以枝葉作骨架，向左右延伸形成連續邊飾，頸飾6雲朵紋。整個腹部繪雲龍紋，龍體較大，張口怒目，鬃發上沖，作迴首狀，四肢前伸，三爪矯健有力。龍身間隙處飾各種形狀的雲紋，襯托出巨龍行空之勢。平底白釉無款。
天球瓶是明初江西景德鎮窯的創新之器。此器造型飽滿，青花龍為三爪，怒目迴首，鬃鬣飛揚，刻畫細膩，頗有氣勢。使用進口青料描繪花紋，燒制過程中有自然形成的鐵結晶斑，更顯出龍的凶猛有力，栩栩如生。此器是永樂時期龍紋青花瓷器中的典型之作。
來源: 中國北京故宮博物院
明成祖(朱棣)永樂年間，因為宗教、外交及貿易等原因，與及中和西亞地區的頻繁交流和互動，瓷器當時作為貿易、政治及文化活動重要器物之一，其形制和紋飾可反映出不同文化地域間交流的痕跡。
當時明朝皇室崇敬藏傳佛教，因而重視與西藏各教派高僧的往來，而瓷器更是賞賜物品中不可或缺的珍貴禮物，因時制宜便燒製了不少帶有宗教涵意和紋飾的瓷器。
另一方面，明廷派遣陳誠等經由陸路以及鄭和經由海路廣泛聯繫中亞和西亞各國，為此更燒製許多模仿伊斯蘭地區的金屬和玻璃器形和紋飾的瓷器作為禮物或貿易物品。當中以白底藍色花紋的青花瓷器，深受崇尚藍色器物的伊斯蘭人們鍾愛。透過相異材質器物間模仿與創造，可反映出明成祖積極經營對外交流的渴求和用心。
明成祖永樂及宣宗宣德年間，不時為迎合伊斯蘭文化地區的喜好和需求，燒製大型青花瓷器如大盤、天球瓶及扁瓶和壺等。青花瓷器是以入口的含氧化鈷(俗稱蘇麻離青)礦物為顏料，在瓷器坯體表面描繪紋飾，之後在上面塗上一層透明玻璃液，再將瓷器放入密閉的窰爐內經不低於攝氏1300度高温燒製而成。但經高温燒裝瓷器能否完整無缺及紋飾能否在潔白瓷面上呈現亮麗的藍色，實非由人工所控制。所以，如本瓶在潔白如玉的胎體上呈現如水墨畫渾散的雲龍紋，是彌足珍貴的瓷器。
此外，本天球瓶如永樂及宣德時間的青花瓷一樣都是發色濃豔，並且帶有滲青鐵銹斑點，成為該時期珍貴瓷器的獨特鮮明特徵。
來源: 台灣國立故宮博物院
On the occasion of the second anniversary of the opening of the Hong Kong Palace Museum (Museum) in July 2024, a new thematic exhibition "Brilliance - Ming Dynasty Ceramic Treasures from the Palace Museum" was officially opened on July 10 and will last for two years. The exhibition is jointly organized by the Hong Kong Palace Museum and the Palace Museum. It uses a new batch of 106 ceramic treasures on loan from the Palace Museum and seven collections from the Hong Kong Palace Museum to showcase the development, evolution and outstanding achievements of ceramic craftsmanship in the Ming Dynasty.
One of the treasure exhibits is the blue and white celestial sphere vase with cloud and dragon patterns, fired during the Yongle period of the Ming Dynasty, with a height of 43.2 cm, a diameter of 9.4 cm, and a full diameter of 16.5 cm. Formerly collected by the Qing Palace.
This bottle has a large and straight body, a round mouth, a straight neck, an extravagant mouth (the diameter is slightly larger than the diameter of the bottle neck), a round belly, and the shoulders and bottom are similar. It is commonly known as the "celestial sphere bottle". The whole body is decorated with blue and white patterns, which are divided into two layers from top to bottom. The outer mouth is decorated with honeysuckle pattern, with branches and leaves as the skeleton, extending to the left and right to form a continuous border, and the neck is decorated with 6 cloud patterns. The entire abdomen is painted with cloud and dragon patterns. The dragon body is large, with an open mouth and angry eyes. The mane is rising, looking back, the limbs are stretched forward, and the three claws are strong and powerful. The gaps between the dragon's body are decorated with cloud patterns of various shapes, highlighting the dragon's movement in the air. Flat bottom with white glaze without style.
The celestial sphere vase was an innovative device of the Jingdezhen kilns in Jiangxi Province in the early Ming Dynasty. This vessel has a full shape, with a blue and white dragon with three claws, looking back angrily, and a flying mane. The depiction is delicate and quite imposing. Imported green materials are used to depict the patterns, and there are iron crystal spots naturally formed during the firing process, which further shows the fierceness, power and lifelikeness of the dragon. This vessel is a typical example of blue and white porcelain with dragon patterns in the Yongle period.
Source: Palace Museum, Beijing, China
During the Yongle period of Ming Dynasty Chengzu (Zhu Di), due to religious, diplomatic and trade reasons, there were frequent exchanges and interactions with Central and Western Asia. Porcelain was one of the important artifacts for trade, political and cultural activities at that time, and its shape and decoration can reflect Traces of exchanges between different cultural regions.
On the other hand, the Ming Dynasty sent Chen Cheng and others to make extensive connections with Central and West Asian countries via land and Zheng He via sea. To this end, the Ming Dynasty also fired many porcelains that imitated the shapes and patterns of metal and glassware in the Islamic region as gifts or trade items. Among them, blue and white porcelain with a white background and blue patterns is deeply loved by Islamic people who advocate blue wares. Through imitation and creation among objects made of different materials, it can reflect Ming Chengzu’s desire and intention to actively engage in foreign exchanges.
In addition, like the blue and white porcelain from the Yongle and Xuande periods, the current Tianqiu vase is rich in color and has green and rust spots, which has become a unique and distinctive feature of precious porcelain from this period.
Source: National Palace Museum, Taiwan