A RARE GILT-SPLASHED BRONZE TRIPOD CENSER AND STAND, 17TH / 18TH CENTURY

Auction Closed

September 23, 08:35 PM GMT

Estimate

30,000 - 50,000 USD

Lot Details

Description

A RARE GILT-SPLASHED BRONZE TRIPOD CENSER AND STAND

17TH / 18TH CENTURY

十七 / 十八世紀銅灑金螭龍耳三足爐連座《宣德年製》仿款

the compressed globular body supported on three conical feet, set to the shoulder with a pair of chilong handles, the single-horned beasts each modeled with an upturned snout, protruding eyes, thick brows and powerful claws clambering over the rim, its arched body extending to a long bifurcated tail curled over the sides, decorated overall with irregular splashes of gilt, cast to the underside with an apocryphal four-character Xuande seal mark, the matching tripod stand in the form of a mallow flower with overlapping petals raised on three ruyi-shaped feet, similarly blotted with gilt splashes (2)

Width 9⅞ in., 25.1 cm

Collection of Wilfrid White, acquired prior to 1932, and thence by descent.

來源

Wilfrid White 收藏，得於1932年之前，此後家族傳承

Remarkable for the fine casting quality and the rich gilt-splashed decoration, bronze censers of this type are rare, and only a small group of examples appear to be recorded, including a very similar censer with its matching stand, from the collection of Philip Wood, sold at Christie's New York, 26th March 2010, lot 1324; another sold in these rooms, 23rd March 1999, lot 318; and the third without the stand, sold in our London rooms, 13th July 2005, lot 192. See also a variation of this type, cast with a cartouche on either side enclosing Arabic inscription, such as one with its matching stand, sold in our London rooms, 14th October 1975, lot 239.

The origin of gilt-splashed decoration remains a source of speculation. Gerard Tsang and Hugh Moss in Arts from the Scholar's Studio, Hong Kong, 1986, p. 184, mention that the popularity of this surface decoration was possibly fostered by Xuande bronzes of the Ming dynasty where the appearance of the gilt-splashes was caused by the uneven surface patination of the vessel, hence the apocryphal Xuande mark on the base of the censer. Robert Mowry in his work on the Phoenix Art Museum exhibition China's Renaissance in Bronze, Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, 1993, p. 169, mentions the appearance of fine paper enlivened with flecks of gold and silver from the early 15th century and suggests that this 'might have also played a role in the creation of such abstract decoration, either directly inspiring those who designed the bronzes or indirectly molding taste to appreciate objects sprinkled with gold and silver.'