Page 238 - 2019 September 11th Sotheby's Important Chinese Art

798
A BRONZE CENSER AND COVER examples compare a similar censer and cover, 十七世紀 銅海獸紋獅耳長方
17TH CENTURY decorated with mythical beasts and with a 熏爐
matching stand sold in our London rooms, 16th
of rectangular section, the flaring sides May 2012, lot 154; and one without the stand 《大明宣德年製》仿款
supported on four animal-mask feet and sold in these rooms, 21st September 2006,
flanked by a pair of lion-mask handles, cast lot 231; another sold at Christie’s London,
to the sides in relief with rectangular panels 1st November 1982, lot 99. See also a censer
enclosing mythical beasts diving and splashing without the cover sold in these rooms, 26th
amid cresting, roiling waves, the reticulated February 1983, lot 326, and a related example
cover with a pair of dragons and phoenix cast but with dragon decoration overall, sold in
in high relief darting among scrolling clouds, these rooms, 21st March 2018, lot 630. An
surmounted by a flaring cylindrical knop oval-section example of this type is in the Saint
encircled by a band of key fret and upright Louis Museum of Art and illustrated in Philip K.
lappets, the base with an apocryphal Xuande Hu, Later Chinese Bronzes, The Saint Louis Art
mark within a recessed cartouche (2) Museum and Robert E. Kresko Collections, Saint
Height 7 in., 17.8 cm Louis, 2008, pl. 18.
Censers of this flaring rectangular form are rare $ 60,000-80,000
in comparison with similar decorated examples
of oval section. For similar rectangular

236 SOTHEBY’S IMPORTANT CHINESE ART