A LARGE INSCRIBED BRONZE BELL DATED QIANLONG 13TH YEAR, CORRESPONDING TO 1748

heavily cast with the straight sides flaring towards the base with a foliate rim, the domed top surmounted by a pair of addorsed scaly dragons, intricately modeled with powerful extended front claws and open mouths revealing pointed fangs, their back arched supporting a 'flame' finial, the body cast on either side with a shaped cartouche, one enclosing an inscription reading Heshuoxian qinwang shuai hefu rendeng faxin jingzhu (Prince Xian together with all family members respectfully sponsored with an enlightened heart), the other bearing a date Qianlong shisannian suici wuchen mengdong jiri (on an auspicious day in the first month of the winter of wuchen year in the thirteenth year of Qianlong), all below a band of pendent lappets each enclosing a fo (Buddha) character supported on a formalized floret, the base encircled by the 'Eight Trigrams' evenly divided by four circular striking discs, metal display plate (2)

Acquired in Stockholm in the 1940s.

The bell is in good condition overall. There is some erosion and wear around the base. There are some small minor casting flaws to the surface and wear overall consistent with age and use.
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.

Dated to the 13th year of the Qianlong emperor’s reign, corresponding to 1748, the inscription on this bell indicates that it was commissioned by the Kangxi emperor’s 24th son, Yunmi (1716-1773), whose mother was the Imperial Concubine Mu. In 1733, Yunmi was granted the title ‘Prince Xian’, by his brother, the Yongzheng emperor, and was posthumously honoured as Prince Xianke of the First Rank. The character for the name Xian means ‘real’ in Manchurian, hence this title carries out an implied meaning of ‘pure sincerity’.

Qianlong period bells of this impressive size and cast with foliate rims are rare, and were produced in larger numbers at the beginning of the Qing dynasty. A Buddhist bell of similar shape but smaller size, dated by inscription to the 58th year of the Kangxi reign (1719), from the Shanyuan monastery, now in the Ancient Bell Museum, Beijing, was included in the exhibition La voix du dragon, Trésors Archéologiques et Art Campanaire de la Chine Ancienne, Musée de la Musique, Paris, 2000, cat. no. 107; together with a larger example, with a cyclical date corresponding to 1702, cat. no. 106. The present bell, was possibly made for a Buddhist monastery or temple as it is inscribed on the pendent lotus petals with the character fo (Buddha).

Another bell of this type, with a cyclical date corresponding to 1695, from the collection of Henry Peirson Harland, was sold in our London rooms, 14th May 2008, lot 670, and again in our Hong Kong rooms, 8th April 2010, lot 1849; and a further bell attributed to the Kangxi reign, was sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 14th November 1990, lot 420.

Quan Jinyou in ‘L’histoire des cloches anciennes fanzhong en Chine’, La voix du dragon, op. cit., pp 231-237, discusses bells of this type, noting that they developed with the introduction of Buddhism during the Han dynasty, when the term fanzhong began to be used. The earliest surviving bell with foliate rim, is however attributed to the Northern Song dynasty, ibid., cat no. 76. Bells of this type grew in popularity during the Ming dynasty, when a large number of examples appear to have been cast. See for example, a Buddhist and a Daoist bell, particularly similar in shape to the present example and also cast with rectangular panels under a band of lotus petals, from the Zhengde period, included ibid., cat. nos 85 and 86. Compare also a bell dated to 1532, in the Ethnographic Museum, Stockholm, illustrated in Sheila Riddell, Dated Chinese Antiquities, London, 1979, pl. 125.