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A GOLD AND SILVER-INLAID BRONZE TAPIR-FORM VESSEL, XIZUN, LATE MING-EARLY QING DYNASTY, 17TH-18TH
奥地利
2025年10月16日 开拍
拍品描述
CENTURYChina. The bronze is heavily cast in the form of a tapir standing foursquare with its head facing forward, bulging eyes, above a wide ruyi-shaped snout, a gui-form protrusion at the center of the forehead, ears pricked, and tail hanging down. The body is inlaid in silver and gold with geometric scrolls and the head is cast in relief with curved brows and a collar encircling the neck. The hollowed body is fitted with a removable and pierced cover cast as bird with curved wings, its eyes inlaid in gilt, and wings with silver-inlaid scrolls.Provenance: From a private estate in New York, USA. Condition: Very good condition with minor wear and casting irregularities. Few nicks, light scratches, and small dings here and there. Expected rubbing and tarnishing to the gilt and silver. The bronze with a rich, naturally grown, deep patina with cuprite and malachite encrustations. Weight: 1,206.7 gDimensions: Length 17 cmThe shape and inlaid decoration of this charming vessel are based on ancient prototypes of the Warring States period. Archaistic vessels of this type are the result of a tremendous interest in ancient bronzes during the Northern Song period, brought about by a renewed interest in Confucianism and anything associated with the rituals of the Bronze Age. The Bronze Age tapirs evidently found favor with the Northern Song Emperor Huizong (r. 1126), who was a very keen antiquarian and who instigated the publication of illustrated catalogues of the items in his collection. One of these, the Xuanhe Bogu tulu ('Xuanhe Illustrated Collection of Antiques'), included an illustration of such an early bronze vessel. The name xizun appears in the Bo gu tu, compiled during the Northern Song dynasty. The word xi meaning 'sacrificial victim', often refers to an ox or another animal. The popularity of these zoomorphic vessels continued into the Yuan, Ming, and early Qing dynasties.The identity of this particular animal has been much discussed and is variously described as a 'mythological animal' and a 'tapir'. The latter seems the most likely candidate since the form has significant features in common with surviving species of tapir, and archaeology has shown that tapirs were indigenous to China in earlier times. Indeed, remains of tapirs were found in Guizhou that date to 200,000 BC. These animals have long been extinct in China, but the Asian tapir has survived in small numbers in areas of Southeast Asia. It is interesting to note that even the bronze tapirs of the Warring States period are shown with collars, which suggests that at one time there was a degree of domestication.Literature comparison: Compare a related earlier gold and silver-inlaid bronze tapir-form zun, dated to the Yuan dynasty, 31.3 cm long, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, object number 中銅000730N000000000.Auction result comparison: Type: Closely relatedAuction: Zacke, Vienna, 10 April 2025, lot 77Price: EUR 14,300 : A gold and silver inlaid bronze censer of a tapir, xizun, Yuan-Ming dynastyExpert remark: Compare the closely related form, manner of casting, and decoration, with similar expression, inlays, and size (19.9 cm). Note the earlier dating.Auction result comparison: Type: Closely relatedAuction: Christie's New York, 13 February 2018, lot 108Price: USD 100,000 or approx. EUR 111,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing: A Chinese gold and silver-inlaid bronze tapir-form vessel, zun, 17th/18th centuryExpert remark: Compare the closely related form, manner of casting, and decoration with similar expression and inlays. The scroll designs to the limbs are both cast (raised) and inlaid, similarly to the present lot. Note the size (26.7 cm) and the vase spout.

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拍品估价:1,500 - 3,000 欧元 起拍价格:1,500 欧元  买家佣金:

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