Lot 351
  • 351

A RARE LARGE FAMILLE-NOIRE 'DRAGON' SEAL LATE QING DYNASTY |

Estimate
30,000 - 50,000 USD
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Description

  • Width 7 1/2  in., 19.2 cm
of square section, applied to the top with a pair of addorsed dragon heads forming the finial, centered by a frontal dragon in relief coiling around a 'flaming pearl' among clouds and flames, the sides with four further striding dragons, all against a rich black ground, the seal face inscribed in zhuwen style with eight characters reading Kangxi huangdi yulan zhibao (seal for the appreciation of the Kangxi emperor)

Provenance

Collection of George H. Taber (1859-1940).
Collection of Graham and Margaret Groves, Coral Gables, FL (by repute).

Exhibited

The Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (on loan) 1935-1940.

Literature

Berthold Laufer, Copy of a note, 'Three Imperial Porcelain Seals',  Field Museum of Natural History, 25th September 1933.
'A Rare Collection of Chinese Art: Porcelains, Jades and Horn Carvings Shown in the Exquisite Examples in the George H. Taber Loan to the Carnegie Institute', Carnegie Magazine, vol. 10, March 1937, figs. IV, V, p. 293.
Chao Ming Chen, 'Symbolism in Chinese Porcelain Decoration', The Bulletin of the American Ceramic Society, vol. 20, no. 6, June 1941, p. 197.

Condition

The dragon head handle with minor restoration and losses to extremities. The surface with wear overall consistent with age.
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.

Catalogue Note

The present seal appears to be the mate to an identical example sold at Freeman's, Philadelphia, 12th March 2016, lot 146, incised with the mark Xiaoyihuanghouyushangzhibao referring to the imperial consort, Lady Tunggiya, who was posthumously honored by the Kangxi emperor as Empress Xiaoyiren in 1689. The two seals are referenced as a pair in a short description written in 1933 by Berthold Laufer, then serving as the curator of Chinese art at the Field Museum, Chicago and again in an article by Chen Ming Chen, 'Symbolism in Chinese Porcelain Decoration', The Bulletin of The American Ceramic Society, vol. 20, no. 6, June 1941. In his 1933 description, Laufer thanks Chen for the opportunity to view the seals, implying that the pair was with Chen in 1933. The present seal is inscribed with two inventory marks; one in red just above the base on one side L35.1.42.A and another in black to a corner of the seal face L..813-24. However by 1935, the pair of seals is recorded as belonging to the well-known collector and patron of the arts, George Hathaway Taber (1859-1940) and on loan to the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The present seal and seal face are illustrated in an article, 'A Rare Collection of Chinese Art: Porcelains, Jades and Horn Carvings Shown in the Exquisite Examples in the George H. Taber Loan to the Carnegie Institute', Carnegie Magazine, vol. 10, March 1937,  figs. IV, V p. 293. The seal also appears as a hand drawing in, 'Notes on the Taber Collection of Oriental Art by A. Avinoff after Consultation with Mr. C.T. Loo, Chinese Dealer in the Art Objects, Paris and New York', Carnegie Museum of Art archives, done while the seals were on loan sometime between 1935 -40, with a comment that the pair was on display in 'Case II' and, it was considered to have made later than the Kangxi period.