Object Details
Artist
spurious signature of Shi Dabin (active 1597-1640)
Description
Teapot with cover, plum blossom shape.
Body: dark chocolate brown clay, fired hard.
Glaze: none.
Decoration: modelled in five-lobed form including base and cover.
Inscription of three characters incised on base.
Inscriptions
Inscription of three characters incised on base.
Provenance
By at least 1915-1939
Pang Yuanji (1864-1949), method of acquisition unknown [1]
1939
Tonying and Company 通運公司, New York, as agent for Pang Yuanji [2]
From 1939
National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, purchased from Tonying and Company, New York [3]
Notes:
[1] See Pang Yuanji [Yuan-chi P’ang] “Xu zhai ming tao tu lu” (Catalog of Chinese Pottery in the Collection of Pang Yuanji) [catalog] (Taipei: Published by Author, 191?), vol. 1 and vol. 2. For volume 1, F1939.61a-b through F1939.69a-b are published on the following pages in ascending order, respectively: pages 3, 7, 9, 11, 13, 21, 25, 27, and 37. For volume 2, F1939.71a-b through F1939.77 are published on the following pages in ascending order, respectively: pages 9, 11, 35, 37, 63, 69, and 73.
Pang Yuanji (1864-1949) was a prominent, late-Qing collector, connoisseur, and philanthropist, whose collecting activities in the early-twentieth century influenced Western appreciation for Chinese art. Born into a wealthy family of silk merchants, Pang meticulously catalogued his large collection of paintings and ceramics in publications known as Xu Zhai, which American collectors, including Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919) used as catalogues to purchase works from his collection. Pang utilized a network of family dealers to manage most of his sales, and Tonying and Company, founded by Pang’s nephew Zhang Jingjiang (1877-1950), was foremost amongst the group. Following Pang’s death, his collection was largely assumed into the national collections of China.
[2] See object file for copy of J.E. Lodge letter to C.F. Yau (dates?), of Tonying and Company, dated November 18, 1939. In closing, Lodge notes that, “Let me add that in pursuance of our conversation I have added three small cups, NN 1, NN 4, and NN 7, to the I-hsing [NB: Yixing ware] I had already selected from Mr. Pang’s collection. I trust that this small addition will meet with his approval.” Presumably these cups are F1939.75, F1939.76, and F1939.77, although it is uncertain which of Pang’s catalog numbers relate to the Museum’s accession numbers. See also notes 1 and 3.
Zhang Renjie 張人傑 (1877–1950), known also as Zhang Jingjiang 張靜江, opened Tonying and Company (Tongyun Gongsi 通運公司) shortly after he arrived in Paris as an attaché on the staff of Sun Baoqi, the Qing government’s Minister to France. Tonying and Company became a family business first based in Paris at 26 Place St. Georges and then branching out to New York City (665 Fifth Avenue in 1925 and 5 East 57th Street in 1946). In addition to selling art directly to clients, Tonying supplied a number of British dealers, including John Sparks and Bluetts. Zhang used his governmental position in China to acquire high-quality works of art directly from the old Imperial Collection. (His friend Li Shizeng served as chairman of the newly created Palace Museum in 1925 and was responsible for the inventory of the Imperial Collections.) Zhang also oversaw the initial removal of more than half of the Imperial Collections to Shanghai in 1933 following the Japanese invasion of Manchuria. Many imperial works found their way into Western collections through Zhang and other dealers during this time. A great deal of Zhang’s wealth, and therefore the financing of the Nationalist cause, came from profits realized by Tonying.
Zhang’s business brought him into contact with several Chinese revolutionaries, including Sun Yat-sen(dates), whose activities Zhang funded using Tonying profits. From then on Zhang supported the Guomindang, becoming one of its “Four Elder Statesmen” following Sun’s death in 1925. The next year Zhang masterminded Chiang Kai-shek’s rise to power. In 1928 he became chairman of the National Reconstruction Commission, which was established by the Nationalist Government, and later governor of Zhejiang province, a post he held until January 1930. Zhang left China for good in 1938 after the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese war. He traveled first to Europe and, because of World War II, on to New York City, where he died in 1950.
Yau “C.F. Yau” Chang Foo (1884-1963), also known as Yao Shulai, was a dealer of Asian art who managed the New York City branch of Tonying and Company, which opened in 1914. C. F. Yau was the younger brother to Yao Hui (1879-1918), wife of Zhang.
[3] See object files for copy of Tonying and Company, Inc. invoice to the Freer Gallery of Art, dated December 1, 1939, and approved by the Secretary of the Smithsonian November 22, 1939. The objects are a part of the Museum’s Freer Gallery of Art collection.
Research updated December 10, 2024
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Exhibition History
Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Ceramics, 1955 (September 19, 1955 to November 10, 1955)
Untitled Exhibition, East Asian Ceramics and Paintings, East Corridor (January 8, 1947 to ---)
Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Art, 1946 (May 6, 1946 to November 17, 1955)
Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Ceramics and Paintings (November 14, 1944 to May 3, 1946)
Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Painting and Ceramics, 1943 (March 22, 1943 to November 13, 1944)
Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Painting and Ceramics (March 14, 1931 to March 22, 1943)
Previous custodian or owner
Pang Yuanji 龐元濟 (1864-1949)
Tonying and Company 通運公司 (established 1902)
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Date
19th century or likely 1920s-30s
Period
late Qing dynasty or likely Republic Period
Accession Number
F1939.63a-b
Restrictions & Rights
Usage conditions apply
Type
Vessel
Medium
Unglazed stoneware
Dimensions
H x W: 9.8 x 14.7 cm (3 7/8 x 5 13/16 in)
Style
Yixing ware
Origin
Yixing, Jiangsu province, China
Related Online Resources
Google Arts & Culture
See more items in
National Museum of Asian Art
Data Source
National Museum of Asian Art
Topic
ceramic
Yixing ware
Ming dynasty (1368 - 1644)
plum blossom
tea
China
stoneware
Chinese Art
Link to Original Record
Record ID
fsg_F1939.63a-b