Page 60 - 2019 September 13th Christie's New York Important Chinese Works of Art

Although standard vessel shapes and established decorative motifs both persisted after the fall of
Shang, the people of Western Zhou (c. 1046 BC–771 BC) quickly introduced changes, perhaps refecting
difering religious beliefs and ceremonial practices; as a result, some vessel types disappeared, while
others evolved, often becoming more elaborate and more imposing. In fact, although both food and wine
vessels had been important during the Shang, many wine-vessel types were discontinued after the Zhou
overthrew the Shang, so that food vessels came to predominate during the Zhou dynasty, presumably
indicating that wine no longer played a major role in ceremonies and rituals. Except for its square socle,
this gui food-serving vessel is conservative in shape, exhibiting the basic Shang interpretation of the vessel
form. Through its transformation by the addition of the socle, however, this vessel refects the new, post-
Shang age in which it was produced.

Typically resting on a circular footring, gui vessels of the Shang dynasty claim a compressed, globular
bowl, frequently with a lightly faring neck and two visually substantial, vertically oriented, loop handles.
A variant vessel form with deep rounded bowl, generally lacking handles but occasionally with a pair of
horizontally set, loop handles, is often categorized as a yu; functionally and stylistically related, both gui
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and yu vessels were used for serving cooked grains. Precise distinctions between yu and gui vessels are
dificult to defne, and, according to Jessica Rawson, “… even the evidence of vessels self-named in their
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inscriptions is partly contradictory”. Even so, the integrally cast inscription on the Shi Xie Gui in the
Shanghai Museum (museum number 41550; [Fig. 1])—which is virtually identical to the present vessels
except that it has an inscription and now lacks its original cover—indicates that it is a gui made for Yi Gong,
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the father of Shi Xie, who commissioned the vessel; thus, given their close similarity to the Shi Xie Gui, we
can state with certitude that the present vessels are gui.
The standard Shang form of the gui continued into the Western Zhou, though modifcations in both form
and decoration soon ensued. The most obvious alteration to the form involved elevating the vessel, often by
presenting it on an integrally cast square socle, as in the present vessels, but occasionally by setting it on
four legs, as witnessed by the Zuo Bao Yi Gui, which was ofered at Christie’s, New York, on 13 September
2018, lot 888. In rare instances, an entire group of vessels might be raised by placing them on a bronze
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altar table, known in Chinese as a jin, such as the example in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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(24.72.1). In the Metropolitan Museum altar set, all of the vessels are wine vessels; the smaller of the
altar-set’s two bail-handled you vessels stands on an independently cast square base that sits on the
altar table. Aesthetically, the elevation of the gui on a socle makes the vessel more imposing and imparts
monumentality, solemnity, and even majesty. Even so, the reasons for raising the vessels remain unknown
but could involve changes in religious needs or ceremonial requirements, for example, or perhaps a simple
desire for greater visual impact.
Favored throughout much of the Western Zhou period (c. 1046–771 BC), socled gui vessels declined in
popularity during the last decades of the Middle Western Zhou period (c. 975–c. 875 BC). Even so, gui
vessels continued to be important, but rather than resting on a square socle, they came to stand either on a
circular footring or, more typically, on three short legs generally in the form of a stylized animal or bird, with
a masklike face at the top and a clawed foot at the bottom, or occasionally, if rarely, in the form of a simple
tab. Such gui vessels tended to be decorated with wide horizontal futes rather than with vertical ribs.

商亡之後，西周 (約公元前1046至771年) 雖沿用前朝 西周雖沿用了典型的商代簋式，但旋即在形制和紋飾
的標準器型和紋樣定例，但未幾便迭有創新，這或許 上有所更易。形制上最明顯的變化是加高器身，常見
源自商周二代在宗教信仰和禮制方面的差異；久而久 的做法是像本拍品般連鑄方座，偶爾也會在器底添加
之，有些器型瀕於失傳，有的則脫胎換骨，朝着窮工 四足，就此可參照紐約佳士得2018年9月13日推出的
殫巧、精謹整飭的方向發展。事實上，食器和酒器雖 作寳彝簋 (拍品編號888)。 4 也有整套器物置於青銅禁
在商代蔚為大觀，但周室滅商之後，多款酒器相繼失 之上的作品，但實例甚罕，其中一例見於紐約大都會
(above) 傳，周代食器遂一枝獨秀，或許也意味着酒在典禮和 藝術博物館 (館藏號24.72.1)。 5 該組大都會館藏皆為
Fig. 1 Shi Xie gui, mid-Western Zhou dynasty, 10th-9th 祭祀中的重要性已大不如前。除方座之外，本青銅簋 酒器，其中二例為提樑卣，較小者配一單獨鑄造的方
century BC. The Shanghai Museum Collection. After 的造型看似保守，大致不離商簋本色。但添加座子這 座，下置青銅禁。從審美角度看來，用座子加高簋身
Chen Peifen, Xia Shang Zhou qingtongqi yanjiu (Study of
Xia, Shang and Zhou Bronzes), vol. 4, Shanghai, 2004, pp. 一神來之筆，卻透露了商滅周起之後的新時代氣息。 可使器物更顯氣派，觀之有莊嚴靜穆之感，甚至平添
277-8, no. 313. 了一絲王者風範。但加高簋身的確切原因，現已無從
圖一 西周中期 是 簋 上海博物館藏 商簋多用圈足，鼓腹扁圓，頸通常微撇，兩側各置 稽考，但當中可能涉及宗教原因或禮制沿革，或純綷
式樣敦穩的立式環耳。此類器形有一變奏，其腹深 是審美方面的追求。
(below) 鼓，無耳居多，偶飾水平環耳，常名之為「盂」；簋
和盂的用途與風格均密切相關，兩者均用於盛放煮 西周年間 (約公元前1046至771年)，連座簋風行不衰，
Fig. 2 Ying gui from the hoard in Zhuangbaicun, Fufeng
county, Baiji, mid-Western Zhou dynasty, 10th-9th 熟的飯食。 1 它們本身已難以明確區分，羅森 (Jessica 其受歡迎的程度僅於西周中期 (約公元前975至875年)
century BC. Baoji Bronze Ware Museum Collection. After Rawson) 更指出，「即便部份實例的銘文曾提到器物 後數十年有所減退。即便如此，青銅簋的重要地位依
Zhongguo qingtongqi quanji (Complete Collection of
Chinese Bronzes), vol. 5: Western Zhou 1, Beijing, 1996, 名稱，當中亦不乏自相矛盾之處。」 2 但據上海博物 然不變，惟其造型已捨方座而取圈足，或採用較為常
no. 65. 館藏是 簋 (館藏號41550) 的連鑄銘文顯示 (圖一)，該 見的三獸或三鳥形短足，器足上端形似獸面，下端狀
圖二 西周中期 簋 寶雞青銅器博物館藏 器是 命人為其父乙公製作之簋，而本拍品與之如出 若有蹄獸足，間或也有作品以三短柱為足，但甚為罕
一轍，唯一的區別在於是 簋具銘文，且原蓋業已佚 見。此類青銅簋多飾寬碩的橫條紋，而非直棱紋。
失。 3 鑑於本拍品與是 簋幾無二致，若據此亦將之
定名為「簋」，想必庶幾無誤矣。
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