Page 136 - Christie's July 9th 2020 Hong Kong Important Chinese Works of Art

2877

A PAIR OF POTTERY ‘LION’
TILES

NORTHERN SONG DYNASTY (960-1127)
Each rectangular panel is carved in high
relief with a ferocious lion seated on a lotus
base, one with its front paw on a brocade
ball, the other with its paw on a cub.
Lion with a cub: 23 º in. (58.8 cm.) high,
stands (2)
HK$300,000-400,000
US$39,000-52,000
As in the West, the lion in China was regarded
as the king of the beasts, and was a symbol of
protection, harmony, blessings and high rank.
In their capacity as defenders of the Buddhist
law and protector of sacred buildings, lion
figures were placed at the entrance to temples,
shrines and sometimes private residences.
They were usually placed in pairs with the
male on the left, female on the right. The motif
of lions playing a brocade ball first appeared
during the Song dynasty, when it began to
convey a more secular meaning of familial joy
and prosperity. Compare with a Jin dynasty
pottery tile of a lion playing a brocade ball in
the Claire & Francis Heritage Lane Collection,
exhibited in Splendor of the Past: The Spirit
and Form of Ancient Chinese Ceramics at
The Hong Kong University of Science and
Technology, 2014.
The result of Oxford Authentication Ltd.
thermoluminescence test no. C110j72 (29 July
2010) is consistent with the dating of this lot.

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