A fine Chinese famille rose eggshell porcelain 'The cowherd and the weaver girl' plate, Yongzheng

Dia.: 20,5 cm

Provenance: A French private collection.

Ref.: The Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, obj. no. AK-NM-13856, for an almost identical example. (link)

Condition: (UV-checked)
- Presenting very well.
- The plate broken in three pieces and then reglued.

品相報告：（已用紫外線光檢查）
- 盤子裂三塊，後粘合。

The Cowherd and the Weaver Girl are characters found in Chinese mythology and appear eponymously in a romantic Chinese folk tale. The story tells of the romance between Zhinü (織女; the weaver girl, symbolized by the star Vega) and Niulang (牛郎; the cowherd, symbolized by the star Altair). Despite their love for each other, their romance was forbidden, and thus they were banished to opposite sides of the heavenly river (symbolizing the Milky Way). Once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, a flock of magpies would form a bridge to reunite the lovers for a single day. Though there are many variations of the story, the earliest-known reference to this famous myth dates back to a poem from the Classic of Poetry from over 2600 years ago.

The story was selected as one of China's Four Great Folktales by the 'Folklore Movement' in the 1920's. It's popular in various parts of Asia and elsewhere, with different places adopting different variations. (source: Wikipedia)

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