CHINA / ARCHAIC AESTHETICS

S otheby's Hong Kong is pleased to present 'CHINA / ARCHAIC AESTHETICS', a curated selection of almost forty archaic bronze artefacts and jade carvings from the long period of the Bronze Age in China to the reunited period of the Han dynasty, including ritual vessels of timeless simplicity and elegance from the Shang and Zhou dynasties.

香港蘇富比欣呈專題拍賣「博古：尊者之器」，獻上高古青銅及玉器近四十件，當中包括多件商周吉金，形雖簡樸，典雅雋永。

The sale is led by a private collection of gold and silver-inlaid bronze chariot fittings produced for the aristocrats, the majority of which were acquired in the 1980s-1990s. Among them is a pair of Warring States period bronze crossbow fittings, believed to have been attached horizontally to the front panel of a chariot as crossbow supports, adjacent to the occupants. Skilfully cast and intricately inlaid in gold and silver with geometric scrollwork, the pair of fittings testifies to the technological virtuosity of the bronze workshops as well as the peak of luxury in the Warring States period.

本場專拍由香港私人收藏銅錯金銀車馬器領銜，大部分蒐集自八十至九十年代，如東周戰國時期銅錯金銀蛇首成對承弩器。此類承弩器，成雙裝於戰車前方，作承托弩弓之用。承弩器既不是弓弩弩臂的附屬物或銅飾，也不是戰鬥時射手的瞄准器，它的高度、造型及位置是為了配合弩弓在戰車上得以最高效的使用，是戰車的一部分，因此大都製作精美。此對承弩器造型取龍身獸首，龍頸高昂，器物通身錯金銀飾直角幾何雲雷紋，絢麗精緻，極為少見。

869

Lot

A silver-inlaid bronze 'bird' ornament, Eastern Zhou dynasty, Warring States period 東周戰國時期銅錯銀鳥形飾件

Estimate: 80,000 – 120,000 HKD

CHINA / ARCHAIC AESTHETICS

25 November 2022 | 10:30 AM HKT | Hong Kong

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875

Lot

A pair of gold and silver-inlaid bronze crossbow fittings, Eastern Zhou dynasty, Warring States period 東周戰國時期銅錯金銀蛇首承弩器一對

Estimate: 400,000 – 500,000 HKD

CHINA / ARCHAIC AESTHETICS

25 November 2022 | 10:30 AM HKT | Hong Kong

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876

Lot

A pair of gold sheet-embellished bronze chariot fittings, Eastern Zhou dynasty, Warring States period 東周戰國時期　青銅包金車馬飾一對

Estimate: 60,000 – 80,000 HKD

CHINA / ARCHAIC AESTHETICS

25 November 2022 | 10:30 AM HKT | Hong Kong

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864

Lot

A pair of bronze 'mythical beast' horses' harness frontlets, Western Zhou dynasty 西周青銅獸面馬冠飾一對

Estimate: 60,000 – 80,000 HKD

CHINA / ARCHAIC AESTHETICS

25 November 2022 | 10:30 AM HKT | Hong Kong

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FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: An inscribed bronze vessel and cover, zhi, Early Western Zhou dynasty | 西周初矧父癸觶 ; A bronze 'mythical beast' tripod ritual wine vessel, jue, Late Shang dynasty 商末青銅獸面紋爵

The auction also features a Shang dynasty jue tripod, formerly in the collection of Ethel Graves Sarkisian, as well as a historically important inscribed zhi vessel from the Western Zhou dynasty, well-documented and once in the celebrated collection of Liu Tizhi (1879-1962).

同場拍賣還有埃塞爾．亨肖．薩爾錫安夫人舊藏晚商銅爵，以及西周早期矧父癸觶。矧父癸觶著錄極豐，且來源顯赫，為善齋劉體智（1879-1962年）清末民初傳世舊藏器，極具歷史及收藏價值。大收藏家劉體智，晚清重臣四川總督劉秉璋（1826-1905年）之子。體智字晦之，晚號善齋老人，安徽廬江人，乃民國年間官員。