An imperial silver flask (Bianhu), Mark and period of Xianfeng, dated to the 2nd year (corresponding to 1852)

Collection of Elisabeth Lefebvre Delattre d’Hailly (1865-1932), and thence by family descent.

Of flattened circular form, at once ancient and contemporary, the present flask (bianhu) represents a rare and important surviving example of imperial silverwork from the first half of the nineteenth century. Inscribed for the second year of the Xianfeng reign (1852), the flask draws upon a shape with deep antiquarian resonance, but shining with the brilliance of imperial grandeur known only to the Qing. The bianhu form, probably derived from Middle Eastern metal prototypes, first arrived in China in the late Eastern Zhou (ca. 770-256 BCE) and early Han dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE), where its compressed, lenticular body and opposed loop handles lend themselves to portable prestige vessels associated with courtly exchange and travel. Originally a container for wine, this form continued to inspire literati and craftsmen alike in the ensuing centuries who revived the form constantly in different media: first in glazed ceramics - most notably the blue-and-white treasures of the early Ming dynasty - and later reinterpreted in precious metals. By the Qing period, these archaistic forms functioned as carriers of cultural memory. While the Qing emperors were Manchurian by birth, their engagement with and patronage of traditional Han forms lent their rule an air of continuity and tradition. 

Rendered here in silver with a sharp trapezoidal base, a raised ridge around its circumference and a long chain simulating knotted string, the origins of the present form in silver appear to be during the Qianlong reign, from which a handful of examples still survive in the Qing Court Collection in the Palace Museum Beijing (accession nos 故00140939; 故00140940 et al.). While other examples marked with reign periods and hall names are similarly preserved in Beijing, among the finest and least common are those produced alongside the present in the second year of the Xianfeng reign (1852). It is interesting to note that this year also marked the wedding of the Emperor to his wife Ci’an. While this coincidence may be incidental, the close relationship between imperial feasting and silver wares in the 19th century may imply that this flask was made intentionally for the imperial wedding; a suitable occasion for an imperial vessel blending history with luxury. Only two Xianfeng flasks (accession nos 故00138216 and 故00138215) appear to survive in the Palace and, despite their tarnish, display much of the same grandeur and elegance as the present example. Bold yet understated; functional yet grand – this flask speaks to the brief and quiet reign of the young Emperor, secluded in his palace in Chengde as the China of his ancestors shrieked into modernity.

In its use of silver, the present flask also reflects the material hierarchies of the nineteenth-century court. While gold retained ultimate ceremonial primacy, high-grade silver occupied a position of considerable prestige in the Xianfeng period, closely tied to imperial finance, official stipends, and the regulated luxury of court life. As trade with the West intensified into the early nineteenth century, it was silver that the Qing court came to prize in exchange for its porcelain and commodities, and fine examples of silver altar and feasting ware are not infrequently attested. Silver objects - especially those bearing reign marks - were often associated with imperial consumption, and accoutrements to the favorite imperial pursuit-hunting. 

Together with the present example held in a French aristocratic family since the 19th century, and beside the two examples preserved in the Qing court collection, only one other flask of this imperial commission appeared on the market in recent years, the “Anson Cup”, offered in London, Alastair Gibson Auctions, 6th July 2022, lot 73.