Page 116 - Chinese works of art and paintings, March 19 Bonhams

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A BRONZE MILITARY OFFICIAL’S SEAL THREE PIERCED GOLD ORNAMENTS
Qianlong 15th year, corresponding to 1750 Five dynasties/Song dynasty
The seal body of square form, surmounted by a cylindrical handle, Each delicate u-shaped thin sheet finely pierced and worked with five
the top of the base inscribed in Manchurian, the seal face cast in fronted lotus linked by spiraled tendrils terminating in an open work
both Manchurian and Chinese seal scripts reading Xianghongqi leaf enclosed by a double beaded border above an outer cut-out
Hanjun toujia la san zuoling tuji (seal of the third company, 1st folded edge.
regiment of the red-bordered banner of the Chinese army), the 4 1/8in (10.5 cm) long; 1 7/8in (4.8 cm) high (2); 3 7/8 (9.8cm) long;
sides inscribed Qian zi sanqian erbai sishiba hao (no. 3248 of Qian), 1 3/4in (4.2cm) high (1)
libu zao (made by the Ministry of Rites) and dated Qianlong shiwu
nian er yue (second month of the 15th year of the Qianlong reign), $5,000 - 7,000
corresponding to 1750.
3 1/2in (9cm) high 五代/宋 金鏤空纏枝蓮紋飾三件

$7,000 - 9,000 Provenance
A private collection, purchased in Japan in 1990’s.
清乾隆 銅柱紐「鑲紅旗漢軍頭甲喇三佐領圖記」
《乾字三千二百四十八號》《禮部造》《乾隆十五年二月 日》邊款 It is probable that these were part of a larger set used for hair
ornaments. See Emma Bunker and Julia White, with Jenny So,
Ornament for the Body and Soul Ancient Chinese Ornaments from
A bronze military official’s seal from the same series and dated to the the Mengdiexuan Collection, no. 114, p. 272, which shows six
same year sold at Sotheby’s New York, 19 September 2015, lot 944. gold sheets, four of which are decorated with cutout and repoussé
designs. Julia White speculates in the text that this group could
have been part of a larger head ornament. It is also possible that our
lot could have been fabricated as comb backs, due to the chased
folded edges of each piece; see op.cit., no. 123. See, two hair pins,
each head rendered in gold filigree work, for another possible use,
illustrated and discussed in Bo Gyllensvard, Chinese Gold and Silver
in the Karl Kempe Collection, no. 45, p. 102.
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