Page 88 - Christie's Hong Kong May 31, 2017 Important Chinese Ceramics and Art

THE PROPERTY OF A DISTINGUISHED HONG KONG COLLECTOR

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A LARGE IMPERIAL GILT-BRONZE ARCHAISTIC 清乾隆 御製鎏金銅拐子龍鈕八卦紋倍夷則編鐘
鑄《大清乾隆拾年製》楷書銘款
TEMPLE BELL, BIANZHONG
來源
DATED QIANLONG TENTH YEAR, CORRESPONDING TO 1745, AND 紐約佳士得，2000 年3 月21 日，拍品167 號

OF THE PERIOD 鐘圓體，中空，腰部稍大，小口齊平，頂飾拐子龍鈕。鐘分為三層，上
層光素無紋飾；主體中層六道弦紋隔開五層紋飾，三層冏紋間以兩層變
The bell is heavily cast in high relief with alternating decorative 形「≡」卦；正面鑄陽文「大清乾隆拾年製」銘款，背面鑄陽文「倍夷
bands enclosing bosses and stylised trigrams, separated by 則」楷書律名，款及律名均下承蓮花座、三面圍飾如意雲；鐘下部鑄兩
bowstring borders interrupted on two sides by a rectangular panel 個圓形音乳，以供敲擊之用，音乳間飾兩組夔紋。此鐘鑄於乾隆拾年，
enclosing an inscribed tablet raised on a lotus base and surrounded 即1745（乙丑）年。
by ruyi scroll. One panel is inscribed with the seven-character
mark, Da Qing Qianlong shinian zhi, corresponding to 1745; the 此鐘紋飾有仿古、也有創新。冏紋、夔紋是古青銅鐘常見的紋飾，而
other side is inscribed with three characters, Bei yi ze. The lowest 「乾卦」紋飾是乾隆常用的紋飾。乾隆酷愛《周易》，對陰陽八卦學說
register is cast with two large discs separating pairs of archaistic 甚有研究。「乾」暗示中天，而「敬天」是他的畢生追求，天即當朝天
motifs. The flat top of the bell is surmounted by a four-sided 子，他取「乾」為年號，刻「乾卦」為璽印，並用以裝飾瓷器、玉器及
fretwork handle. 此編鐘。此鐘鑄造精細，頗具心思，盡顯乾隆盛世的皇家氣派。
12º in. (31.1 cm.) high
編鐘一組十六枚，此鐘為四個低音中的最低音「倍夷則」。
HK$1,000,000-2,000,000 US$130,000-260,000

PROVENANCE

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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