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A BAMBOO ‘SEVEN SAGES OF THE BAMBOO 293
GROVE’ BRUSHPOT, BITONG
19th century
Finely carved in high relief of the Seven Sages
engaged in the scholarly activities of viewing a scroll
and playing chess, all amidst a dense bamboo grove
with a thick canopy of leaves carved in shallow relief,
the reverse left plain.
18.6cm (7 1/3in) high

£2,000 - 3,000
HK$22,000 - 33,000
CNY18,000 - 28,000

十九世紀 竹雕竹林七賢筆筒

293
A FINE BAMBOO BRUSHPOT, BITONG
18th/19th century
The cylindrical brushpot carved in low relief with a
continuous scene of a sage resting, slumped with
heavy-lidded eyes and serene expression, beneath
a crescent moon, under a willow tree, behind him
a mischievous figure steals a sip from the languid
sage’s jar of wine, incised ‘Wang Qi’.
15cm (5 7/8in) high

£6,000 - 8,000
HK$66,000 - 88,000
CNY55,000 - 73,000

十八/十九世紀 竹雕太白醉酒筆筒

The sage depicted is most likely the Tang poet
Li Bai (AD701-762). Li Bai was part of a group of
poets known as the ‘Eight Immortals of the Wine
Cup’ who celebrated the joys of wine. One of his
most famous poems was ‘Drinking alone under the
moon’ which describes the poet having a private
party with three guests: himself, the moon, and
his shadow. In this bamboo brushpot, however,
the artist has replaced Li Bai’s shadow with that of
another mischievous figure sipping from his wine
undetected, adding a humorous twist to a well-
known poem.

For a similar design on a bamboo brushpot
depicting Li Bai drinking, see Ip Yee, Chinese
Bamboo Carving Part I, Hong Kong, 1978, pp.222-
223.

FINE CHINESE ART | 293