Mid Ming Dynasty Of circular section, the slightly convex top of the cover brightly enamelled with a winged long-tailed makara dragon with open jaws issuing a string of pearls and a long-stemmed lotus flower, all amidst clouds on a turquoise ground above rolling waves, the sides of the box and cover similarly decorated with continuous lotus scrolls. 11.7cm (4 3/4in) diam. (2). 注脚 明中期 銅胎掐絲琺瑯摩迦羅紋蓋盒 This exquisite box and cover belongs to a small group of cloisonné enamel wares decorated with a makara dragon striding above rolling waves. These were made between the second half of the 15th century and the first half of the 16th century. Compare four related cloisonné enamel examples in the Palace Museum, Beijing, mid Ming dynasty, in the Qing Court Collection, all similarly decorated with makara dragons striding above sea weaves, including a long-necked vase, two tripod incense burners, a bowl and a dish, illustrated in Compendium of Collections in the Palace Museum: Enamels 1, Beijing, 2011, nos.69, 87, 88, 91 and 95. See also a further related cloisonné enamel zhadou, first half of the 16th century, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Enamel Ware in the Ming and Ch'ing Dynasty, Taipei, 1999, no.6. See four more cloisonné enamel bowls decorated with makara dragons: the first in the collection of D. Lyon-Goldschmidt, illustrated by H.Garner, Chinese and Japanese Cloisonné Enamels, London, 1962, pl.31A; the second in the Pierre Uldry collection, illustrated by H.Brinker and A.Lutz, Chinesisches Cloisonné: Die Sammlung Pierre Uldry, Zurich, 1984, pl.88; the third bowl in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, dated to the 15th century, illustrated by B.Quette, ed., Cloisonné: Chinese Enamels from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties, New York, 2011, no.27; and a cloisonné enamel bowl, 15th/early 16th century, which was sold at Christie's New York, 18 September 2014, lot 606. The makara is a dragon-like mythical beast with a split and foliated tail and a floral scroll issuing from its mouth. Originating in Hindu mythology, the iconography of makara evolved in Tibetan Buddhism and became a popular motif depicted in Ming dynasty Imperial works of art. The depiction of the makara dragons and lotus blossoms illustrates the important relationship during the early to mid-Ming dynasty, between the Imperial court and Tibetan Buddhism, as continuation of the close relationship between the Yuan emperors and Tibetan hierarchs, and as means of exerting Imperial influence of the region as well as, occasionally, gaining religious legitimacy within the realm. Makara dragons were depicted during the 15th and 16th centuries in other mediums including porcelain and textiles. Compare with a blue and white 'makara' jar, Xuande mark and period, in the Qing Court Collection, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed Red, Shanghai, 2000, no.100; see also a doucai jar and cover with makara dragons, Chenghua period, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Catalogue of the Special Exhibition of Ch'eng-Hua Porcelain Ware, Taipei, 2003, p.127, no.113; and compare with a detail of a makara dragon on an embroidered silk thangka of Yamantaka-Vajrabhairava, early 15th century, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, illustrated by J.C.Y.Watt and D.P.Leidy, Defining Yongle: Imperial Art in Early Fifteenth-Century China, New York, 2005, pl.35. 盒圓身，子母口，蓋面及器壁面以藍色釉為地，蓋面飾一穿花摩羯龍紋，填以深藍色琺瑯釉為地，騰飛於雲海間，獸口大張，口含一枝蓮花，下垂瓔珞，呈吞雲吐霧之勢，其身滿佈鱗片，雙翼展於兩側，長尾高揚於身後，末端捲曲，填以紅、黃、藍、白、黑、綠色琺瑯，豔麗而充滿祥瑞之氣。蓋壁飾折枝五瓣小花，盒壁飾秋菊，花卉鮮妍飽滿，葉脈蜷曲動人，琺瑯釉顏色明潤，瑩亮潤澤，光鮮亮麗。 北京故宮博物院清宮舊藏的明代中期掐絲琺瑯器中，亦有飾摩迦羅紋的例子，包括摩羯紋雙螭長頸瓶一件，掐絲琺瑯摩羯紋鼎式爐兩件，以及碗、盤各一件，著錄於《故宮博物院藏品大系：琺瑯器編1》，北京，2011年，編號69、87、88、91及95。另見台北故宮博物院藏一件明代十六世紀前期掐絲琺瑯摩羯尊，著錄於《明清琺瑯器展覽圖錄》，台北，1999年，編號6。 另見各大公私立博物館收藏帶有摩羯紋的掐絲琺瑯碗：其中一例於D. Lyon-Goldschmidt舊藏，著錄於H. Garner，《Chinese and Japanese Cloisonné Enamels》，倫敦，1962年，圖版31A；第二例著錄於H.Brinker and A.Lutz編，《Chinesisches Cloisonné: Die Sammlung Pierre Uldry》，蘇黎世，1984年，圖版88；第三例在紐約大都會藝術博物館，年份定位15世紀，著錄於B. Quette編，《Cloisonné: Chinese Enamels from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties》，紐約，2011年，編號27。另見紐約佳士得曾售出一件明銅胎掐絲琺琅摩迦羅紋鋪首尊，2014年9月18日，編號606， 摩羯一詞乃從梵文「makara」音譯而來，又稱摩迦羅，實為帶佛教風格的一種夔龍紋，惟常與蓮莖同時出現在器物上。明中早期宮廷承襲元朝對藏傳佛教的推崇，加強和西藏的聯繫，故器物裝飾常有佛教題材。明代中早期的瓷器、掐絲琺瑯以及絲織品上常有裝飾。參考一件北京故宮藏明宣德青花夔龍紋罐之龍紋，見《故宮博物院藏文物珍品全集青花釉裡紅（上）》，上海，2000年，編號100。香草龍更出現在明代成化一朝的青花瓷器上，或跟憲宗篤信藏傳佛教有關。可比較台北故宮藏一件明成化天天字款鬥彩夔龍紋罐，見《成化瓷器特展圖錄》，台北，2003年，頁127，編號113。紐約大都會博物館藏一件十五世紀早期閻曼德迦-大威德金剛唐卡所繡龍紋亦可比較之，見屈志仁及D.P.Leidy著，《Defining Yongle: Imperial Art in Early Fifteenth-Century China》，紐約，2005年，圖版35。