Scenes of harmonious families featuring women and frolicking children—expressions of the hope for and joy of having offspring—began to appear in Chinese decorative art in the late Song dynasty (960–1279). This massive platter’s relief carving is typical of high Yuan-dynasty style. Three different geometric patterns—respectively delineating sky, water, and land—are testament to the artist’s sophisticated skill. The artist had a sense of humor, too—a boy plays hide-and-seek behind the large garden rock, but shows only his forehead.
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Showing background patterns used in upper half of this platter.
Showing background patterns of lower half used in this platter.
Artwork Details
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元 剔紅仕女嬰戲圖漆盤
Title:Tray with women and boys on a garden terrace
Period:Yuan dynasty (1271–1368)
Date:14th century
Culture:China
Medium:Carved red lacquer
Dimensions:H. 2 3/8 in. (6 cm); Diam. 21 7/8 in. (55.6 cm)
Classification:Lacquer
Credit Line:Gift of Florence and Herbert Irving, 2015
Accession Number:2015.500.1.31
[ Klaus F. Naumann , Tokyo, until 1989; sold to Irving]; Florence and Herbert Irving , New York (1989–2015; donated to MMA)
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "East Asian Lacquer from the Florence and Herbert Irving Collection," November 22, 1991–February 23, 1992.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Chinese Painting, Masterpieces from the Permanent Collection," August 28, 2004–February 20, 2005.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Chinese Lacquer," July 18–November 14, 2005.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Chinese Lacquer: Painted and Carved," 2007.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Asian Lacquer: Masterpieces from the Florence and Herbert Irving Collection," November 3, 2007–May 11, 2008.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Chinese Lacquer: An Introduction," December 4, 2007–May 11, 2008.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Cinnabar: The Chinese Art of Carved Lacquer," August 6, 2009–February 21, 2010.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Red and Black: Chinese Lacquer, 13th–16th Century," September 7, 2011–June 10, 2012.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Chinese Gardens: Pavilions, Studios, Retreats," August 18, 2012–January 6, 2013.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Introduction to Chinese Lacquer," December 11, 2013–July 6, 2014.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Sumptuous: East Asian Lacquer, 14th–20th Century," October 25, 2014–August 9, 2015.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Chinese Lacquer: Treasures from the Irving Collection, 12th–18th Century," August 15, 2015–June 19, 2016.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Cinnabar: The Chinese Art of Carved Lacquer, 14th to 19th Century," June 15, 2016–October 9, 2017.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Children to Immortals: Figural Representations in Chinese Art," August 9, 2018–January 3, 2021.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Masters and Masterpieces: Chinese Art from the Florence and Herbert Irving Collection," January 30, 2021–June 5, 2022.
Watt, James C. Y., and Barbara Brennan Ford. East Asian Lacquer: The Florence and Herbert Irving Collection. Exh. cat. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1991, pp. 76–78, cat. no. 23.
Watt, James C. Y., and Denise Patry Leidy. Defining Yongle: Imperial Art in Early Fifteenth-Century China. Exh. cat. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2005, p. 20, fig. 6.
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