Bonhams 1793 : A fine and rare white jade archaistic pouring vessel and cover, guang 18th/19th century

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8 Nov 2012 10:00 GMT London, New Bond Street
Fine Chinese Art
Back to auction 20024

A fine and rare white jade archaistic pouring vessel and cover, guang

18th/19th century
The lustrous white stone with delicate patches of russet and grey, hollowed to form a pouring vessel raised on a stepped foot and with four mythical-animal heads suspending loose-ring handles at the rim, the domed cover with carved decorative elements on each of the four sides, one with archaistic wings over the spout and the other three formed as stylised birds, all beneath a finial shaped as a crouching winged dragon, the exterior of both vessel and cover finely carved with shallow-relief taotie masks on a leiwen ground, wood stand and box.
17.5cm (17in) high (4).

Estimate:

£120,000 - 180,000
HK$ 1.4 million - 2.1 million
CNY 1.1 million - 1.7 million

Footnotes

Provenance: Jade House, Hong Kong, purchased on 20 January 1963
A Canadian private collection

十八/十九世紀白玉雕仿古饕餮紋活環蓋觥

來源: 於1963年1月20日購自香港Jade House
加拿大私人收藏

The form of this piece comes from an archaic bronze prototype first developed during the Shang Dynasty (c.1500-1050 BC). Vessels known as guang were used as ritual wine containers, usually basing their form to some extent on stylised animal forms, often birds. Whilst the present lot is very different in purpose and style, the original guang shape with one elongated end, as well as the bird-like designs for the ring handles, reflect its archaic origins. This nod to archaism illustrates an interest in the perceived austerity of ancient times, whilst the exuberance and complexity of the design appeals to a more exhibitionist Qing taste.

Compare a related archaistic bowl dated to the Qing Dynasty in the Qing Court collection, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum: Jadeware (II), Beijing, 2008, pl.103.