An unusual bronze 'boshanlu' cover, Song dynasty

Acquired in London, 1987.

Depicting an idyllic scene that blends the iconography of the Buddhist ‘Pure Land’ with the Daoist ideals of living in harmony with nature, the present censer cover would have been rendered yet more enchanting with the ignition of incense, the smoke from which would whirl and dance among the bronze peaks. Intricately cast with the lost-wax technique, the cover differs somewhat from more conventional early covers designed for censers of goblet form and shows a level of sophisticated craftsmanship rarely seen on censers of this type.