A COPPER-RED-DECORATED POWDER-BLUE-GROUND 'MONK' DISH Kangxi Elegantly reserved in powder blue with a figure in the centre painted in blue and copper-red of a monk in flowing robes, his rotund belly exposed, a pole in one hand with a bundle on his back, his left hand holding a small pearl which he is eying intently, the sides decorated with sprays of bamboo. 26cm (10 1/4in) diam. Footnotes: Please note this Lot is to be sold at No Reserve. 本拍品不設底價 清康熙 灑藍地釉裡紅和尚圖盤 Provenance: acquired on 22 May 2018 (collector's notes) Published and Illustrated: M.White, Eating at the Whites' House: Ceramics from the Mary and Peter White collection, vol.3, n.p, 2022, p.109 來源：獲得于2018年5月22日（藏家筆記） 著錄：M.White，《Eating at the Whites' House: Ceramics from the Mary and Peter White collection》，第3冊，無出版地，2022年，第109頁 A similar dish, Kangxi, is illustrated by C.J.A.Jörg, Chinese ceramics in the Collection of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam: the Ming and Qing dynasties, Amsterdam, 1997, p.127, no.132 (and front cover). According to the author, the figure may be identified as one of the 'fighting monks' from the celebrated Ming dynasty novel Shuihu zhuan (Water Margin), one of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature, which recounts the exploits of 108 outlaws who gather at Liangshan Marsh to oppose corrupt officials and social injustice. The figure is most plausibly Lu Zhishen, known as the 'Flowery Monk' (Hua Heshang), a former military officer who becomes a monk in hiding after killing a corrupt official. In the novel, Lu Zhishen is described as powerfully built, fierce in appearance yet fundamentally righteous, his body famously covered with tattoos, hence his nickname. Though nominally a monk, he drinks heavily, eats meat, and relies on his prodigious physical strength and long pole or staff, a weapon with which he performs many heroic feats. His wandering life, martial prowess, and moral directness made him one of the most popular and recognisable figures in Shuihu zhuan. Artists such as Chen Hongshou (1598-1652) created playing cards depicting characters from the novel, which in turn inspired Kangxi-period potters, reflecting its enduring appeal in popular culture. See a very similar copper-red-decorated powder-blue-glazed 'monk' dish, Kangxi, which was sold at Christie's New York, 22 March 2024, lot 971. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing