Footnotes

清乾隆 金釉梵文盌
「大清乾隆年製」篆書模款

Provenance: a distinguished Italian private collection

來源：意大利傑出私人收藏


Please note the present lot is only available for viewing at Bonhams Rome office, Italy, by appointment (Email: rome@bonhams.com; Tel. +39 06 485 900). The Soprintendenza alle Belle Arti Italiana considers the present lot to be a work of national importance and requires it to remain in Italy. This Lot therefore cannot be exported from Italy. For any questions please refer to the Department.

敬請注意，本拍品存放於意大利，僅可在邦瀚斯羅馬辦公室預約查看（電郵：rome@bonhams.com；電話+39 06 485 900）。Soprintendenza alle Belle Arti Italiana（意大利文物部）認為本拍品對意大利具有重要價值，要求其留在意大利境內。因此，本拍品無法自意大利運送出境。如有任何疑問，請與我司中國藝術部工作人員聯繫。

Meticulously decorated with lanca characters and fully coated in shimmering gold glaze, the present bowl is an exceedingly rare example testifying to the Qing Imperial aesthetic taste and to the technical virtuosity of the Imperial potters during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor.

Other examples of gold-glazed vessels dating to the Qianlong reign include an archaistic gu vase, impressed Qianlong seal mark and of the period, and a stem cup, second half of the 18th century, illustrated in A Millennium of Monochromes. From the Great Tang to the High Qing. The Baur and the Zhuyuetang Collections, Geneva, 2019, p.330-331. See also a gold-glazed 'Wheel of Transmigration', Qianlong six-character mark and of the period, in the Zhejiang Museum, Hangzhou, illustrated in Treasures of Imperial Porcelain, Beijing, 2011, pp.96-97.

Its unique shape and designs were likely inspired by a metal or wood prototype used in Tibet, probably a ritual bowl also known as a 'sound bell'. Following the Qianlong Emperor's strong interest in Tibetan Buddhism, gifts and tributes were often exchanged between the Qing Court and the Tibetan hierarchy; see J.Hevia, 'Lamas, Emperors, and Rituals: Political Implications in Qing Imperial Ceremonies', in Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, vol.16, no.2, 1993, pp.243-278. New shapes and design elements thus entered the general repertoire of Chinese Imperial porcelain wares, and Chinese and Tibetan artists often worked side by side in the Imperial Workshops to create unique Tibeto-Chinese styles.

Gold was considered one of the most auspicious metals, possessing an opulence that catered to the extravagant taste afforded by only the wealthy and powerful. The process of applying gold on porcelain wares in the Imperial kilns at Jingdezhen was documented by Pere d'Entrecolles in a letter dated 1721, where he mentioned: 'When one wishes to apply gold, one grinds in and mixes it in the bottom of a porcelain vessel until a little cloud of gold appears in the bottom of the water. One allows it to dry and then uses it by mixing it in a sufficient amount of gummed water. With thirty parts of gold, one incorporates three parts of white lead, and then one applies it to the porcelain, just like a coloured glaze'; see Yu Pei-chin, De Jia Qu: Qianlong Huangdi de Taoci pinwei 得佳趣—乾隆皇帝的陶瓷品味 (Obtaining Refined Enjoyment: The Qianlong Emperor's Taste in Ceramics), Taipei, 2012, pp.129-130. The gilding process described in the letter is also accurately described in the Nanyao biji, a treatise compiled during the Qianlong period, stating: 'Gilding process nowadays...recipes for gilding and silvery tracery painting: mix ten parts of gold (one qian), with one part of lead powder (one fen)'. After the gold layer was applied to the vessel, a low firing was necessary to fix it; see A Millennium of Monochromes. From the Great Tang to the High Qing. The Baur and the Zhuyuetang Collections, Geneva, 2019, pp.165-166.

A serious student and active practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism, the Qianlong Emperor commissioned a variety of Tibetan-inspired ritual implements and sacrificial utensils to furnish the renovated and newly-built monasteries, temples, chapels and shrines within the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace and the Summer Residence at Chengde. These objects were also often bestowed as presents to the Emperor's family and other Court members but also played an essential role in the interchange of gifts to honour the religious and diplomatic relations with the Dalai and Panchen Lamas who came to Chengde to pay homage to the Emperor. The Qianlong Emperor forged a particularly strong relation with the Third Panchen Lama (1738–1780). Several records describe the lama's visit to Beijing in 1780 to partake in the Emperor's 70th birthday celebrations. For the occasion, the Emperor had the Xumifushou Temple built near the Imperial Summer residence in Chengde, which imitated the features of the Panchen's monastic seat in Tibet. The Emperor also appointed the lama as his personal spiritual preceptor; he learned the Tibetan language to converse with his guest and presented the religious figure with porcelain wares, silk, paintings and Buddhist sculptures. In addition, following the lama's sudden death in Beijing later in the year, the Emperor established the Pavilion for Rain and Flowers, Yuhua Ge 雨花閣 within the residential quarters of the Forbidden City to honour the religious figure; see R.W.Dunnell, et al., New Qing Imperial History: The Making of Inner Asian Empire at Qing Chengde, London, 2004, p.22.

An Imperial imitation-gold bowl and cover, impressed Qianlong mark and of the period, in the National History Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in Golden Treasures. Selection of Tibetan Works of art, Beijing, 2001, pp.262-263.

Compare with a fine and extremely rare pair of gold-glazed imitation-archaic-bronze hu vases, Qianlong seal marks and of the period, which was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 8 April 2011, lot 3009.