A BRONZE OPENWORK 'LOTUS AND EGRET' BRUSHREST YUAN – MING DYNASTY

finely cast in high relief and openwork as a miniature three-peaked mountainscape, the brushrest rendered with nine egrets amidst foliate scrolls and small and blossoming lotus buds, including one swooping downwards from the central and highest crest, all supported on a rectangular base resting on six short feet, the base bordered with a cusped apron picked out with ruyi heads, the patina of a warm reddish copper-brown colour

The brushrest is in overall good condition. There is a bruise to the left corner as visible in the illustration, and some original casting flaws, including a 0.1 cm opening between one of the lotus pads and stem.
"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."

Brushrests were an essential item for the scholar’s desk, serving both as a utilitarian vessel and as a source of inspiration. This motif of a lotus (lian) pond populated by egrets (lu) is highly auspicious, as it forms the wish yi lu lian ke (‘May you be successful all the way’). This subject enjoyed continued popularity in the Yuan dynasty, when it was reproduced on numerous objects in a variety of media; see for example a painting by an anonymous artist of the Biling School, attributed to the Yuan dynasty, illustrated in Shane McCausland, The Mongol Century, London, 2014, pl. 85, together with a jade hat finial carved in openwork with a similar subject, pl. 86. 

This rare openwork brushrest is cast in the lost wax process in the overall shape of a three-peaked mountain. Another example is in the British Museum, cast with five peaks and equestrians, registration number 1986,0412.1. The form is found in porcelain in the Jiajing and Wanli reigns. For a Wanli reign-marked example sold at auction, see the example sold in these rooms, 20th November 1985, lot 50. See also a brushrest similarly cast with egrets in a lotus pond, but attributed to the Jiajing / Wanli period, sold in these rooms, 8th October 2014, lot 3312, from the collection of Ulrich Hausmann. For a brushrest of similar three peaked form, see the example illustrated in Chinese Ceramics in The Idemitsu Collection, Japan, 1987, pl. 734.

Another bronze brushrest, modelled with an egret standing in front of five mountain peaks, in the Musée Cernuschi, Paris, dated 16th / early 17th century, was included in the Museum’s exhibition Bronzes de la Chine Impériale des Song aux Qing, Paris, 2013, cat. no. 61.