Lot 154
  • 154

Rare brûle-parfum couvert archaïsant en jade blanc, fang ding Dynastie Qing, époque Qianlong

Estimate
120,000 - 150,000 EUR
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Description

  • Jade, wood stand
le corps et le couvercle à section rectangulaire finement sculptés sur les quatre faces de masques taotie en léger relief, rythmées par des arêtes crénelées, le bord souligné d'une fine frise de grecques, flanqué de deux larges anses évasées élégamment décorées de rubans entremêlés esquissant un ruyi au bout, le tout reposant sur quatre pieds cylindriques, la prise du couvercle rectangulaire évidée frangée de pétales de lotus, la pierre très blanche légèrement parsemée de petites inclusions rouille, socle en bois (3)

Provenance

Collection of Monsieur Tchao Itao, General Consul of China in France (active in Paris ca. 1919-1924).
Collection de Monsieur Tchao Itao, Ancien Consul Général de Chine à Paris, sold at Drouot, Paris, 16th April 1942, lot 103.
Acquired by the grandmother of the present owner.

Condition

The censer has been carved from a single piece of jade, the cover has been carved from a single piece of jade. Both censer and cover may have been made using the same piece of stone as there is a small area of impurities and russet speckling on one side of the censer and the cover that matches. The stone is of an even, almost white pale celadon tone, except for the small area of speckling to the stone visible on one side of the censer and one side of the rim of the cover. The stone is translucent, especially when under light. A ca. 3cm long crescent-shaped vein runs across one leg. Another vein runs diagonally across another side and into the handle. There are tiny fritts along the exterior edge of the rim of the censer. There is a ca. 0.3cm and a ca. 0.3cm shallow fritt to the inside rim of the censer. There are tiny fritts scattered along the inner and outer edges of the cover. The stone is of a beautiful uniform very pale, almost white colour, with tiny patches of russet inclusions on one side and one handle. The surface on the inside and base of the censer and cover, the legs and handles has been beautifully polished to a glow.
"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."

Catalogue Note

Carved from a single piece of almost flawless white stone of even tone, this censer is outstanding for its quality. Its form and design are inspired by archaic bronze fang ding made during the late Shang and Western Zhou dynasties. The archaistic style which emerged during the Yongzheng period and flourished under the Qianlong Emperor, dominated the arts of his reign, from porcelain to works of art crafted from various materials. Jade carvers working for the Imperial court during the Qianlong period were skilled adaptors and the present piece is a fine example of their interpretation of ancient forms to suit contemporary taste.

The Qianlong Emperor had a strong preference for wares that imitated antiquities and disapproval for the florid ‘new style’ is documented in palace records and poems that he composed. In the catalogue to the exhibition The Refined Taste of the Emperor. Special Exhibition of Archaic and Pictorial Jades of the Ch’ing Court, National Palace Museum, Taipei, 1997, p. 49, it is noted that the Emperor followed the literati aesthetic that developed in the Song dynasty, whereby the study and appreciation of antiques allowed scholars ‘to experience the artistic freshness and moral strength of the classical period. In turn, they hoped to invest their own generation with these values, thus enriching both art and public life’. In order to promote this the Emperor ordered the court to publish collections of drawings of antiquities and circulate them among craftsmen.

A white jade fang ding of this type in the collection of the Asian Museum of San Francisco, is illustrated in René-Yvon Lefebvre d’Argencé, Chinese Jades in the Avery Brundage Collection, Tokyo, 1977, pl. LIII; and another, from the collection of Marcia Israel, was included in the exhibition Chinese Jade From Southern California Collections, Los Angeles County Museum, Los Angeles, 1976, cat. no. 45. See also a fang ding with carved straight legs and upright rim handles, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, included in the Museum’s exhibition Great National Treasures of China, Taipei, 1996, cat. no. 45; another in the De An Tang Collection, exhibited in A Romance With Jade, Palace Museum, Beijing, 2004, cat. no. 124, and sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 10th April 2006, lot 1757; a third from the collection of Rt. Hon. Sir Peter Blaker, sold in our Hong Kong rooms, 19th November 1985, lot 81; and a larger example, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Compendium of Collections in the Palace Museum. Jade, vol. 10, Qing Dynasty, Beijing, 2011, pl. 64.