HOTUNG | 何東 The Personal Collection of the late Sir Joseph Hotung: Part 1 | Evening

HOTUNG | 何東 The Personal Collection of the late Sir Joseph Hotung: Part 1 | Evening

View full screen - View 1 of Lot 18. A black lacquer mallow-shaped dish, Song dynasty | 宋 黑漆葵式盤.

A black lacquer mallow-shaped dish, Song dynasty | 宋 黑漆葵式盤

Auction Closed

October 8, 01:37 PM GMT

Estimate

200,000 - 300,000 HKD

Lot Details

Description

A black lacquer mallow-shaped dish,

Song dynasty

宋 黑漆葵式盤


elegantly constructed with shallow everted sides in the shape of seven overlapping mallow petals, divided by S-shaped ridges delicately carved on the interior and underside, covered overall in an attractive black lacquer, the countersunk base with a seal mark, wood stand and Japanese wood box

18.5 cm

Christie’s Hong Kong, 30th April 2001, lot 621.


香港佳士得2001年4月30日,編號621

The newly established Song dynasty and subsequent changes in the distribution of wealth and resources, birthed a renewed discovery of the beauty of nature. This fresh aesthetic celebrated ideals of classical beauty, creating the Song dynasty lacquerware which evoked an understated elegance and sense of perfection.


The Song rule aimed to revive romanticised concepts of antiquity based on Confucian Han ideals, while also trying to establish an identity that deviated from that of the Tang. Thus, the Song scholar-elite promoted commercial liberalism which granted much more freedom to the activities of merchants, brokers, and landowners. The Capital became a vibrant urban hub, and a wealthy upper-class was formed. Because silver had become the Song currency of payment, hence less available, and goldware was restricted to the court, the development of exquisite materials such as lacquer flourished.


The mallow flower was one of the most popular forms of lacquerware during the tenth to fourteenth centuries. Many of these pieces were made with cores of wood in the laborious quandie method, or with a lacquer-stiffened textile core. These methods allowed craftsmen to create complex lobed shapes and gave the wares a weightless quality, as demonstrated by the current dish. The mallow flower here represents longevity and a fulfilling life. See two similar but slightly smaller examples, sold in these rooms, 8th October 2013, lots 142 and 147 (17.7 and 14.9 cm), from the collection of Sakamoto Goro.


宋代漆作,內斂優雅而精純完美,體現遞嬗時空雋永的經典美感。此類器物代表之新式審美,製於宋代乍立之時,因權富分配之改變,以及對於自然之美的重新理解而生。


為建立異於唐朝國情,而復興以漢代儒道為基礎之古學遺風,宋代學者文人倡導自由貿易,給予商業活動更多空間,國都亦成繁華都會。來自國土四方之大量商販,形成社會上一富裕階層,使得更多人能享用過去僅限於朝貴之特權與奢華。然白銀作為宋代貨幣,供不應求,金器又限用於宮廷,因此造就漆藝發展,不僅滿足日常之需,並符合上層社會對於美的追尋及文雅品味。


葵花式漆器,十至十四世紀時流行。多數素漆器以圈疊技法(薄木片屈成器形,並相互膠疊)作木胎,或裱糊麻布為夾紵胎。後者可作較為複雜花式,並使成器輕似鴻毛,正如此盤。錦葵象徵長壽、豐盛。參考坂本五郎舊藏兩例,尺寸略小,售於香港蘇富比2013年10月8日,編號142及147(17.7及14.9公分)。