Page 62 - CHRISTIE'S Marchant Nine Decades of Chinese Art 09/14/17

MARCHANT: NINE DECADES IN CHINESE ART

720 A SMALL BRONZE CENSER WITH Censers of this form are also referred to as ‘narcissus bowls’,
CHILONG HANDLES and they may have been used to fulfll a number of functions
on the desk of the scholar. A similar vessel is illustrated in
MING DYNASTY, 16TH-17TH CENTURY scroll 6 of the imperial Guwan Tu (‘Pictures of Ancient
Playthings’) dated to 1728 in the collection of Sir Percival
The oval censer is raised on four low ruyi-shaped feet and has David currently on loan to the British Museum (ref. PDF
two handles formed as chilong climbing up the gently faring X01), which suggests that the scholarly object also found
sides with their heads turned away from the rim. The slightly favor at court.
recessed base is cast with an apocryphal six-character
Xuande mark. A similar low-sided vessel with chilong handles, dated to
5Ω in. (14 cm.) wide across the handles the 16th-17th century, is illustrated by P. Moss, The Second
Bronze Age, Hong Kong, 1991, no. 43.
$4,000-6,000
明十六/十七世紀 銅螭龍耳水仙盆式爐
PROVENANCE

Private collection, France.

(mark)
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