Page 37 - March 17, 2020 Imperial Jade and Cloisonne, Sotheby's, New York

The present lavishly decorated censer represents the high objects designed during the Qianlong period were illustrated in
level of artistic and technical achievement of cloisonné enamel The Illustrated Regulations for Ceremonial Paraphernalia of the
craftsmanship during the Qianlong period. As expected of wares Qing Dynasty (Huangchao liqi tushu). The present censer takes
made for imperial use, every aspect of the design has been its form from archaic ritual bronze fangding vessels of the Shang
carefully planned and executed to the highest standard. The and Zhou periods. Although the overall form of the vessels
quality of the workmanship suggests that this censer was either follows the archaic models, the Qing craftsmen exercised their
made in the Cloisonné Enamel Workshop within the Zaobanchu imagination and made liberal changes to the decoration of its
(Imperial Palace Workshop) located within the Forbidden City in prototype, merging the archaistic designs of the taotie masks
Beijing, or was a tributary item made for the emperor in one of with the later decorative motif of lotus blossoms to create a
the important workshops located in Guangzhou. All craftsmen visual mode that is at once familiar and innovative.
working in this medium in the Palace Workshop were artisans For a related censer, see one also from the Samuel P. Avery
recruited from Guangzhou where there was an established Collection, but with gilt-bronze mythical beast handles,
tradition of cloisonné enamel production. Hence, both the illustrated in John Getz, Catalogue of the Avery Collection of
foundation and the improvement of the Palace Workshop were Ancient Chinese Cloisonnés, New York, 1912, pl. 89, and later
closely connected to the practices in Guangzhou.
illustrated in Lin Xiaoping, ‘The Blue of Jingtai. The Samuel P.
Cloisonné enamel censers of this impressive size and decoration Avery, Jr., Collection of Chinese Cloisonnés in The Brooklyn
were made for the many temples located within the palace Museum’, Orientations, July 1990, p. 32. fig. 5.
compound. It was the Qianlong Emperor who decided that the Censers with ruyi-shaped handles are more commonly found in
shapes of altar vessels should reflect those of archaic ritual rounded square form. Compare three sold at auction, the first
bronzes. He ordered the Grand Secretaries to use classical in our London rooms, 7th March 1980, lot 112; the second in the
material when designing ritual objects, and insisted that all same rooms, 12th May 1989, lot 660, and the third sold in these
designs be approved by him before manufacturing. Ritual
rooms, 18th September 1991, lot 313.

70 PROPERTY FROM THE BROOKLYN MUSEUM, SOLD TO SUPPORT MUSEUM COLLECTIONS