Page 134 - 2020 Nov 30 Christie's Hong Kong Important Chiense Works of Art

THE PROPERTY OF A DISTINGUISHED HONG KONG COLLECTOR
3079

A LARGE IMPERIAL GILT-BRONZE ᪺̗㡳 ྽⽗㛶㕺㘍ሤಡ㹪㖳Ռڤ♄мૻמ⛸㝬
ARCHAISTIC TEMPLE BELL, BIANZHONG 㞎Ǘ૰᪺̗㡳ቆໞ⽗ǘ᜷ᕋ㘞ᢎ
DATED QIANLONG TENTH YEAR, CORRESPONDING TO 1745, AND ϝᬝ
OF THE PERIOD
⡥⡙צ೥ᇑ卿 ჺ ᝲ ᚚ卿ᐽ৅ ⽚
The bell is heavily cast in high relief with alternating decorative
bands enclosing bosses and stylised trigrams, separated by 㦈஋㵲卿ԋ⚁卿⭤㛑☸ഌ卿ཎऑ䁖ჹ卿㮱㱈ᑀຽ䂆㟏ǯ㦈ߎἃӲྉ卿ӳ
bowstring borders interrupted on two sides by a rectangular panel ྉݏ⡵Ὅ⡠㱈厎Ԗ㵲ԋྉݪ㙣ᆃ⡠㪛㧷Նྉ⡠㱈卿Ӳྉݼ⡠㧿սݦྉ㍩
enclosing an inscribed tablet raised on a lotus base and surrounded ᆨǸŝǹࣀ厎᫈㬷㦪㪈ᙔǸഌ᳖Գ㪏ᑢჺㅳǹ㠺᪪卿⫫㬷㦪㪈ᙔǸ٘ഗ
by ruyi scroll. One panel is inscribed with the seven-character ߺǹᥓᝧᇋल卿᪪ࣿᇋलமӴᐂ⸥ⱤᄠǮӲ㬷உ㱈ൈዪ㫡厎㦈Ӵ㛑㦪ݦ
mark, Da Qing Qianlong shinian zhi, corresponding to 1745; the ٖ஋ᆨ㮥Ա卿ս؊ᙁᖿԠ⊇卿㮥Ա㧿㱈ݦ⢑ഀ⡠ǯ᫉㦈㦪ᙻԳ㪏ᑢჺ卿
other side is inscribed with three characters, Bei yi ze. The lowest ࣊ 卻ԨӺ卼ჺǯ
register is cast with two large discs separating pairs of archaistic
᫉㦈⡠㱈ᝳ֎ऒǮԮᝳࠛᙲǯݼ⡠Ǯഀ⡠ᛓऒ㬪㠩㦈჎㇦⎏⡠㱈卿⩧ǸԳ
motifs. The flat top of the bell is surmounted by a four-sided
ࣀǹ⡠㱈ᛓԳ㪏჎⊇⎏⡠㱈ǯԳ㪏㝌ዴǶॶᚿǷ卿ཌ㩽㪈ݨࣀໝ㊯≾ᝳ
fretwork handle.
Ⓔ♾ǯǸԳǹᜡ▔ԋ഍卿⩧Ǹᘾ഍ǹᛓձ⎏⊳⊂㘤᭯卿഍࣊⋁ង഍ຽ卿
12 º in. (31.1 cm.) high
ձइǸԳǹἃჺ⽚卿ߴǸԳࣀǹἃ∵ࣇ卿Ԇ⊇սㅛ㱈≢଍Ǯℱ଍ࣿ᫉⤔㦈ǯ
HK$700,000-900,000 US$91,000-120,000 ᫉㦈㦪㙁⠢⡿卿㯄ݰᇵሲ卿⏌㰆Գ㪏⏇ӽ⎏⎑།᭔᰾ǯ
PROVENANCE ⤔㦈Ӭ⢑ࢦݪ៦卿᫉㦈ἃ୨ٖ׆㮥ԋ⎏ᝬ׆㮥Ǹ٘ഗߺǹǯ
Sold at Christie’s New York, 21 March 2000, lot 167
One of the rectangular panels on the present bell reads Da Qing
Qianlong shinian zhi, ‘made in the 10th year of the Qianlong reign’,
corresponding to 1745. Another panel reads Bei yi ze, which refers to a
classical pitch corresponding to G-sharp in Western musicology.
This bell would have been one of a group of sixteen bells, each with its
own tone, which together made up a set of bianzhong. These would
have been suspended from a wooden frame, and all were similar in
size, shape and design, but with varying thickness of walls in order to
produce the different musical notes. These bells played a prominent
role in Imperial ritual ceremonies and banquets.
The current bell is possibly modelled after the Qianlong Emperor’s own
collection of archaic bronze bells, which were illustrated in the Xiqing
gujian, and some of the Zhou dynasty examples have a similar design to
the present bell such as the bosses and archaistic motifs. The trigrams
on the bell may possibly be an innovative stylisation of the trigram qian,
which symbolises the ‘son of heaven’ and was the Qianlong Emperor’s
favoured symbol.
Compare to a bronze bell, also dated to the tenth year of the reign of
Qianlong, included in the exhibition, Oriental Works of Art, The Oriental
Art Gallery, London, June 1993, no. 136. See also a very similar bell
inscribed with the characters Yi zhe, sold at Christie’s New York, 21-22
September 1995, lot 492. Another Qianlong bell, dated to 1743, but cast
with dragons motifs, was sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 27 May 2008,
lot 1540.

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