Bonhams 1793 : An extremely rare lacquered wood dog with huanghuali stand Song dynasty

A lacquered wood dog with huanghuali stand Song dynasty

amended

24 Nov 2012 15:00 CST Hong Kong
A Private North American Collection of Scholar's Objects
Back to auction 20909

An extremely rare lacquered wood dog with huanghuali stand

Song dynasty
Well-preserved and naturalistically portrayed in the form of a recumbent dog, its head extended upwards and turned right, its left frontal paw on top of its right and the back with strong hind legs, all framed by a protruding spine ending in a slim curled tail, its ears, jaw, collar and fiery flames lacquered red, huanghuali stand.
17.3cm long. (2).

Estimate:

HK$ 300,000 - 500,000
US$ 39,000 - 64,000
£25,000 - 41,000

Footnotes

The image of a hound depicted in recumbent form gained popularity during the Song dynasty but ceramic versions were already evident since the Han dynasty. There are also resemblance between these jades and the pottery recumbent hounds of the Tang dynasty, which have been cited as a supportive evidence to date suriving jade examples to the Tang dynasty, as illustrated in Wenwu, vol.9, 1977, p.26, pl.28. Jade examples of crouching hounds such as the current lot are often rendered with lifelike form relating to the identity and aspirations of the owner, and were worn as toggles or ornaments. For an example of a Song dynasty jade recumbent dog preserved in the British Museum, see Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jades. From the Neolithic to the Qing, London, 1995, p.366, no.26:10.

It is extremely rare to find lacquered wood figures of animals from the Song dynasty, and most lacquered wood sculptures during this period are of Buddhist figures. The dog depicted in the current lot is slightly emaciated, showing boney ribs, pronounced spinal skeletal structure and flames emerging from the limbs, which suggests a process of transcendance and the mystic nature possesed by the imagery of the canine creature. The animal is also heavily associated with fidelity, high rank and status in Chinese history.

宋木雕漆繪獵犬

獵犬木胎雕刻，作伏臥狀，前爪交疊，雙耳後遢，口部微張，側首而望。通身罩彩漆，頸系項圈，前爪後凸雕兩道火焰紋，並以紅彩裝飾。獵犬脊骨突出，腹部兩旁雕刻肋骨，尾尖捲曲，形態優美。

此漆繪獵犬極為罕見。類似形態的器物除在唐代陶製獵犬上出現外，大部分多見於唐末至宋代的玉雕之上，可參見《文物》，1977年9月，頁26，圖版28。然而，如細觀其表現方法，例如突出的脊骨以及動物的生態，與宋代白玉犬更為相似，參見大英博物館藏一件宋代白玉雕臥犬，其表現手法等各方面都與本器極為相似，見Jessica Rawson著，《Chinese Jades. From the Neolithic to the Qing》，倫敦，1995年，頁366，編號26：10，亦刊登在香港藝術館編，《中國生肖玉雕》，香港，1996年，頁123，圖版98。