Page 79 - China's Renaissance in Bronze, The Robert H.CIague Collection of Later Chinese Bronzes 1100-1900

HE TWO HALVES OF THIS CIRCULAR C O V E R E D BOX are similarly
shaped. The cover has a broad flat face with rounded edges that
T turn downward to form the short straight sides; continuing the
straight lines of the cover, the walls of the box descend and then curve
inward at the bottom to meet the low ring that circumscribes the wide,
shallow, countersunk base. An incised line defines the narrow, undecorated
lip at the edge of both box and cover. The cover sports low-relief deco-
ration comprising two salamander-like chilong, or chi dragons, 1 shown
from above, enmeshed in a pattern of scrolling lingzhi fungi. Their bodies
echoing the vessel's curvature, the chi dragons stride forward, each turning
its head toward the center of the cover to stalk its companion. Two sym-
metrically arranged stalks of branching lingzhi fungus occupy the center
of the cover; each chi dragon grasps one stalk of the auspicious fungus in
its mouth and each places its proper left front paw on a branch of the
other stalk. Each chilong has a single horn, a mane divided into two tufts,
a carefully articulated spinal ridge from which emanates a wisp of flame,
and a bifurcated tail whose symmetrically curled ends blend harmoniously
with the lingzhi scrolls and spiraling wisps of flame. One following the
other, two chi dragons stride around the sides of the box, each shown
from above and each bearing a branch of lingzhi fungus in its mouth. The
branches of fungus do not scroll, but project forward, separating the head
of one chilong from the tail of other. Similar to those on the cover, each
chilong has a broad, flat snout, a single horn, a mane (undivided in this
case), a dorsal ridge with a curling wisp of flame, and a bifurcated tail with
elegantly coiled tips. Each chilong marches forward, its head turned slightly
to its proper left, its extended right front paw firmly planted for the next
step. On both box and cover, the broad, unembellished areas of metal
that make up the chi dragons and lingzhi fungi contrast with the back-
ground, which is textured with an incised pattern of formalized flower
designs. The countersunk base is undecorated, as are the interior surfaces
of the box and cover.
Like the Hu Wenming covered box [11], this incense container derives
ultimately from the small gold and silver covered boxes that rose to
popularity in the Tang, though it finds its closest parallels in the small jade
and lacquer boxes that were favored in the Ming. A small, white jade box
by Lu Zigang, thought to date to 1561 and now in the Bei Shan Tang
Collection, Hong Kong, has the same shape as the Clague box, with its
straight sides, rounded corners, broad, flat face, and countersunk base

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T H E R O B E R T H. C L A G U E C O L L E C T I O N