AN ARCHAIC BRONZE RITUAL FOOD VESSEL (DUI) WARRING STATES PERIOD, 4TH CENTURY BC

the rounded body with a short waisted neck rising to a flat everted rim and with a pair of small ring handles to either side, cast in relief with three rows of smooth bosses, all supported on three short cabriole legs, the patina a silvery gray-green with light patches of encrustation, Japanese wood box (2) 

Old Japanese Collection.

Osaka Municipal Museum, Chugoku Sengoku Jidai No Bijutsu (Arts from the Warring States Period), 1991. no. 79.

In good condition.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

A related ding of elliptical form with three rows of bosses and resting on similarly elegant cabriole legs and dated to the 6th century BC from the Avery Brundage Collection, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco is discussed and illustrated in Jenny So, Eastern Zhou Ritual Bronzes from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, Washington D.C.1995, fig. 9.4, pp. 116-117 with other ding and again fig. 28.2, p. 195 in regard to its evolutionary similarity to dou. Additionally the author illustrates a dui with its cover, ibid. fig. 29.3, p.199 currently in the British Museum of similar form and with the same delicate cabriole legs which are also  placed well under the rounded base.