Page 22 - Fine Chinese Art Christies London May 2018

PROPERTY FROM AN IMPORTANT PRIVATE EUROPEAN COLLECTION
*40
A MAGNIFICENT AND IMPORTANT BRONZE RITUAL WINE
VESSEL, ZUN
LATE SHANG- EARLY WESTERN ZHOU DYNASTY
(12TH-10TH CENTURY BC)
The bulbous mid-section and the spreading lower body of the vase are boldly
cast with taotie masks interspersed with thick vertical fanges. Upright blades
decorate the wide faring cylindrical neck, also separated by fanges which
protrude beyond the edge of the mouth rim. The interior of the base bears a
four-character inscription. The smooth dark green patina is almost black in
tone, with some areas of encrustation.
12º in. (31.2 cm.) high
£200,000-400,000 $290,000-560,000
€230,000-460,000

PROVENANCE
S. Kawai Collection, Kyoto.
Property of the Late Dr. A. F. Philips (1874-1951).
Sotheby’s, London, 30 March 1978, lot 21.
From an important private European collection.
LITERATURE
Sueji Umehara, Nihon Shucho Shina Kodo Seikwa, Selected Relics of Ancient
Chinese Bronzes from Collections in Japan, Osaka, 1960, vol. II, pl. CXXXV.
Ba Na and Zhang Guangyu, Zhong Ri Ou Mei Ao Niu Suo Jian Suo Ta Suo Mo
Jinwen Huibian, 1978, Taipei, vol. 9, no. 1408.
Zhou Fagao, San Dai JiJinwen cun bu, 1980, Taipei, no. 645.
Minao Hayashi, Studies on Yin and Zhou Bronze Decoration: A Conspectus of
Yin and Zhou Bronze Vessels, 1986, Tokyo, p. 223, no.20.

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20 Other fees apply in addition to the hammer price – see Section D of our Conditions of Sale at the back of this Catalogue