Page 92 - Sothebys Fine Chinese Art London, November 2018

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A LARGE AND IMPRESSIVE GLAZED Grand in stature and naturalistically modelled, this horse
POTTERY HORSE exemplifies the thriving ceramic sculptural tradition of the
TANG DYNASTY Tang dynasty (618-907). It was during this period when
equine sculpture reached a new artistic peak, when craftsmen
were able to capture the confidence and vigour of the horse.
the animal standing four square on an unglazed rectangular Through its bulging eyes, flaring nostrils, pricked ears and
plinth, the head slightly turned and the proud face pronounced cheek bones, both the spirit and individuality
naturalistically depicted with unglazed bulging eyes, of the animal is meticulously portrayed. Together with the
pronounced jaw bones and flaring nostrils, the anatomy simplicity of the unadorned body and imposing size, the
rendered with well-defined muscles and bone structure, physical appearance of the present figure exudes a sense of
covered overall with a pale yellow straw glaze, the hooves in tamed power and strength.
ochre
79.5 cm, 31¼ in. One of the ‘Six Livestock’ in ancient China, the horse was the
embodiment of the highest honours as well as transferable
PROVENANCE markers of wealth. During the Tang dynasty, ownership of
Purchased at the Biennale des Antiquaires, Paris, in the late horse statues was asserted as an aristocratic privilege in
1960s/early 1970s. an edict forbidding artisans and tradesmen this right. The
representation of a large sculpture of distinctive quality, such
W £ 100,000-150,000 as the present example, reflects the high rank and importance
HK$ 1,020,000-1,520,000 US$ 130,000-194,000 of the owner and his family.
Compare a horse of similar size, covered in a yellowish-brown
唐 黃釉馬
glaze, from the collection of George Eumofopoulos and now
in the British Museum, London, illustrated in William Watson,
來源
Tang and Liao Ceramic, London, 1984, pl. 220; another,
於1960年代末/1970年代初購自巴黎古董雙年展
covered in a rich dark-brown glaze, with patches of cream
glaze diffused with splashes of green and ochre on the head,
neck and haunches, sold in these rooms, 2nd March 1971,
lot 92; and a horse excavated in 1965 from Qinan county,
Gansu province, illustrated in ‘Gansu qinan xian tangmu
qingli jianbao’, Wenwu [Cultural Relics], 1975, no. 4, pl. 4, fig
3. Smaller horses of this type include one covered in a pale
yellowish-green glaze, from the collection of Mr and Mrs
William Dieterle, exhibited in The Arts of the T’ang Dynasty, Los
Angeles County Museum, Los Angeles, 1957, cat. no. 164; and
a smaller brown-glazed horse, in the Metropolitan Museum of
Art, New York, accession number 51.66.

90 SOTHEBY’S