A FINELY DETAILED ‘JOURNEY TO THE WEST’ FAMILLE ROSE PORCELAIN PLAQUE, QING DYNASTY China, 1644-1912. Finely painted in bright enamels, gilt, and iron-red above the glaze to depict a winter scene from the classic Journey to the West, with Xuanzang surrounded by men on the left, and Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing, Xuanzang’s protectors and disciples, standing beside his horse. Note the superb detail work to the faces of Sun Wukong, the powerful monkey king, and Zhu Bajie, the greedy pig-like demon.Provenance: British trade. Condition: Very good condition with some wear and minor firing irregularities.Weight: 1,482 g Dimensions: Diameter 34.7 cmJourney to the West (Xiyouji), is an epic 16th-century novel fictionalizing the actual journey of the historical figure of Xuanzang (602–664) who made a pilgrimage to India to collect Buddhist sutras. During the eventful trip, the honest but hapless Buddhist monk is accompanied by Sun Wukong, a tempestuous and powerful monkey king recently released from a supernatural prison, Zhu Bajie, a greedy pig-like demon, and Sha Wujing, a quiet and sensible river spirit. The troupe suffer a series of increasingly dangerous trials but eventually prevail, finally bringing the true word of Buddha back to the Tang Imperial court.Auction result comparison:Type: Distantly relatedAuction: Sotheby’s New York, 11 September 2012, lot 395Price: USD 37,500 or approx. EUR 47,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writingDescription: A famille-rose 'monkey king' vase, Qing dynastyExpert remark: Note that this vase also depicts a scene from The Journey to the West with a similar rendering of the monkey king Sun Wukong清代粉彩《西游記》場景飾盤中國，1644-1912年。釉上彩描金，精美繪製了《西遊記》中的冬天場景，左邊玄奘被幾個文人圍住，他的徒弟孫悟空、豬八戒、沙悟净站在白馬旁邊。猴王孫悟空和豬八戒的面部細節刻畫。 來源：英國古玩交易市場。 品相：狀況極好，有一些磨損和輕微的燒製不規則現象。 重量：1,482 克 尺寸：直徑34.7 厘米 拍賣結果比較： 形制：些微相近 拍賣：紐約蘇富比，2012年9月11日，lot 395 價格：USD 37,500（相當於今日EUR 47,500） 描述：清代粉彩「西遊記」圖棒槌瓶 專家評論：請注意此瓶也是描繪《西遊記》場景，有相似的孫悟空繪畫。