Page 78 - Sotheby's Part II Collection of Sir Joeseph Hotung Collection CHINESE ART , Oct. 9, 2022
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ဏ ڡ A BRONZE RIDER ON A CHIMERA,
ზ HAN DYNASTY
ɛ the rider depicted with long rabbit ears, thick lips, almond-shaped eyes framed by bushy brows and a bulbous nose, his hair neatly
Җ combed and detailed with striation, balancing a cylinder on the top of his head, his slim body bare save for a wide belt, his arms
ය outstretched, holding a beaker in his right hand, the winged beast depicted with prominent round eyes framed by arched brows,
crowned by a pair of ribbed and curved horns between pointed ears, its mouth open in a ferocious roar revealing its sharp fangs,
ᖕ standing foursquare accentuating its broad shoulders and muscular haunches, the ridged tail gently curved to the left
h. 16.9 cm
ዱ
ࢭ PROVENANCE Ը๕j
J.J. Lally & Co., New York, 14th March 1990. ᔝଣઠdॲߒd1990ϋ3˜14˚
EXHIBITED ࢝ᚎj
Arts of Ancient China, J.J. Lally & Co., New York, 1990. Arts of Ancient Chinadᔝଣઠdॲߒd1990ϋ
British Museum, London, on loan, 1998-2015.
ɽߵ௹يdࡐd࠾࢝d1998-2015ϋ
LITERATURE
̈وj
Arts of Ancient China, J.J. Lally & Co., New York, 1990, cat. no. 9.
Arts of Ancient Chinadᔝଣઠdॲߒd1990ϋdᇜ9
HK$ 800,000-1,200,000
US$ 102,000-153,000
Ingeniously sculpted as a lively rider balancing on the back of a ϤུɓɛයମᖕdᕐᑑʱੵdᏐ᙮ဏ˾ණணၾྼ͜ɓԒٙ
fantastic beast, the present lot belongs to a small and distinctive ڡზኜfτᏏΥ٭̈ɺɓኜdၾϤڐɓᅵdɛي̸˓ϖᆵd
group of Han dynasty bronze utensils which are both decorative and ဲ݊ذዱຐdତπτᏏ௹يdϗɝˮɿʛdʕᎉ෧ᖵஔ
functional. An almost identical object was excavated in Hefei, Anhui, ̦d̏ԯd1988ϋdྡو156f࠰ಥࢱˤᖵஔᔚπɓԷdШ
with the figure holding a shallow pan in its left hand, indicating it was ॹذዱຐᆵdϗɝလಥᔛޜd࠰ಥd1996-7ϋdᇜ10d
likely made to serve as an oil lamp, and is preserved in the Anhui ܝਯॲߒԳɻ2011ϋ3˜24˚dᇜ1261fᒔԈɓᏖڿɛي
Provincial Museum, illustrated in Wang Ziyun, Zhongguo diaosu යᖕԷdɛيᕐ˓ѩϖຐdᖕዹԉdҖᗳˬd2021ϋ3˜19˚ί
yishu shi [History of Chinese sculptural art], Beijing, 1988, pl. 156. ॲߒԳɻש̈dᇜ809f
Another example without a lamp pan, formerly in the Tsui Museum
of Art, Hong Kong, was exhibited in Art Treasures from Shanghai
and Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1996-7, cat. no. 10, and later sold at
Christie's New York, 24th March 2011, lot 1261. See also a related
figural group, modelled as a hatted man supporting two lamp dishes
and mounting a furious single-horned bovine, sold at Christie's New
York, 19th March 2021, lot 809.
154 I FOR COMPLETE CATALOGUING ༉းྡʫ࢙ሗᓭᚎ SOTHEBYS.COM/HK1292 THE PERSONAL COLLECTION OF THE LATE SIR JOSEPH HOTUNG I 155