Ming dynasty · Xuande mark and period
Jar with Dragon
青花云龙纹罐 · 明宣德
1426–1435underglaze cobalt 青花imperial five-clawed dragon
A five-clawed dragon — the emperor’s own emblem — rolls through scrolling clouds in deep, heaped cobalt. The Xuande reign is the moment many collectors call the summit of blue-and-white: the pigment pools and bites into the glaze, giving the beast its thunderous weight.
Painted at the imperial kilns of Jingdezhen, jars like this never left palace hands. Look closely at the brushwork on the scales and claws — every line laid in a single pass, no corrections possible. It is the same discipline our painters train in today.
Where it lives now 现藏
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (open access, CC0) — view in the collection →