A VERY RARE WUCAI 'PLUM BLOSSOM' MONTH CUPKangxi six-character mark and of the periodThe finely potted vessel rising to a gently flaring rim, decorated to represent the eleventh month with a white-flowered prunus tree and sprays of narcissus issuing from rockwork, the reverse with a poetic inscription:Su Yan xue ning shu, qing xiang feng man zhi, 'Simple beauty like a tree frozen with snow. Branches moving in the wind full of clear fragrance.'4.9cm (1 8/9in) highProvenance: 清康熙 五彩梅花花神杯青花「大清康熙年製」楷書款「賞」印Provenance:Collection of H.M. KnightSotheby's Hong Kong, 2 May 1991, lot 98Sotheby's Hong Kong, 27 April 1999, lot 423Sotheby's Hong Kong, 8 October 2013, lot 3092Exhibited:Oosterse Schatten, 4,000 Jaar Aziatische Kunst, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, 1954, cat. no. 357來源：亨利奈特 (H.M. Knight 1903-1971)舊藏香港蘇富比，1991年5月2日，拍品98香港蘇富比，1999年4月27日，拍品423香港蘇富比，2013年10月8日，拍品3092展覽：Oosterse Schatten，《4,000 Jaar Aziatische Kunst》，阿姆斯特丹國家博物館，阿姆斯特丹，1954年，圖版357Delicately potted porcelain c, such as the present example, were known as 'Month c' and were made at the Imperial kilns during the Kangxi reign. These vessels were painted in underglaze-blue and overglaze famille verte enamels in wucai style depicting individual flowers that designated each of the twelve months of the year.The design format of these c, incorporating a pictorialposition on one side and a poetic inscription ending in a seal mark on the other, was inspired by the long tradition in classical painting and was an innovation of the Kangxi period.The poems inscribed on the 'Month c' are all couplets from Tang dynasty poems. The Kangxi Emperor greatly admired Tang poems as demonstrated in ordering thepilation of all recorded Tang poems in 1705, on the 44th year of his reign. This project came into fruition under the leader of the official Cao Yin, when the plete Collection of Tang Poems' Quan Tangshu was published in 1706, including over 40,000 poems and a foreword written by the Kangxi Emperor himself; see R.Scott, For the Imperial Court. Qing Porcelain from the Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art, New York, 1997, pp.82-83. It is thus likely that these delicate 'Month c', decorated with poems favoured by the Emperor, were made during the later period of the Kangxi reign, when thependium of Tang poetry was published.The twelve flowers painted on the 'Month c' were selected following the traditions of the Flower Festival, which fell on the 15th day of the second month in the Chinese calendar, signifying the arrival of springtime and celebrated the birthday of all flowers. The Flower Festival was highly popular during the Qing dynasty. On this day, people made coloured paper flowers or decorated trees and plants with coloured ribbons. Memorials were also erected for the Gods of Flowers and can still be found in the Summer Palace in Jehol, attesting to the popularity of this festival amongst the members of the Qing Court. It i