A SOAPSTONE 'FISHING IN A LANDSCAPE' WASHER XINGYOUHENG TANG MARK, QING DYNASTY, DAOGUANG PERIOD, DATED TO 1849

the water vessel with flat mouth, the sides slightly tapering towards the base, the exterior lightly incised with a continuous landscape scene with a scholar fishing from a sampan between rocky banks, beneath a flock of flying birds, the river scene giving way to rocky mountains with various trees, all subtly accentuated by the natural colours in the stone, the slightly recessed underside crisply engraved with nine characters in clerical script reading Daoguang jiyou Xingyouheng Tang zhi (‘Made by the Hall of Constancy in the jiyou year of the Daoguang period’, corresponding to 1849), the stone of a creamy-beige tone with natural veining and patches of pale green and vermillion red

Collection of the Fifth Prince Ding, Zaiquan (between 1849 and 1854).
Sotheby’s London, 6th December 1979, lot 1026.
Sydney L. Moss Ltd., London, May 1983.

Gerard Tsang and Hugh Moss, Arts from the Scholar’s Studio, Fung Ping Shan Museum, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1986, cat. no. 111.

Michel Beurdeley and M-Th. Lambert-Brouillet, L’eunuque aux trois joyaux. Collectionneurs et esthetes chinois, Fribourg, 1984, p. 155, figs. 108 and 109.

The washer is in overall good condition with only an old tiny nick on the edge of the rim and light wear to the incised decoration (showing on the catalogue illustration). The actual colour is consistent with the catalogue photo.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The Xingyouheng Tang mark identifies this exquisite water vessel as having been the property of the fifth Prince Ding, Zaiquan. For his biography see Arthur W. Hummel, Eminent Chinese of the Ch’ing Period, Taipei, 1991, pp. 728–729. Zaiquan attended the palace school for princes and in 1808 began to study under the court calligrapher and artist Tang Jinzhao (1772-1856). In 1816 he was appointed a nobleman of the tenth rank. He was a great-great-grandson of the Qianlong emperor and while his birth date is uncertain, he died in 1854.

Tsang and Moss, op.cit., p. 140, describe the present water vessel belonging to a type that was used in conjunction with a small ladle to provide water for the inkstone. A number of art objects are known bearing Zaiquan’s signature. He was a keen art collector and seems to have favoured identifying some of his pieces with his studio name. He may have employed a craftsman who wrote his inscriptions over the years as the style of the seal-script mark, seen on the present washer, is similar to that found on other pieces attributed to him.