Page 157 - Bonhams FINE CHINESE ART London November 2 2021

316 †
A FINE BAMBOO CARVED WRIST REST
18th century
Carved in relief with leafy bamboo stems
amongst rockwork extending up the left side
of curved shaft, incised inscription to one side
which reads: 竹解虛心是我師, which may be
translated as: ‘Bamboo, understanding its
core to be empty, is my teacher’ and further
inscribed: 潤田主人手置 (The wrist rest of Run
Tian).
27.2cm (10 3/4in) long.
£5,000 - 8,000
CNY45,000 - 71,000
十八世紀 竹雕臂擱

Provenance: Dr John William Hawksley Grice
(1891-1976)

來源：John William Hawksley Grice醫生
（1891-1976）舊藏

Dr J.W.H.Grice and his wife Kathleen moved
to Tianjin in 1922, where he worked as a
doctor for 30 years. During this period he
formed an important collection of ivory and
bamboo carvings, before returning to the UK
in 1952. A significant part of his collection
was gifted to the Victoria and Albert Museum
and the British Museum, London (see for
example a bamboo ‘prunus’ wrist rest,
17th/18th century in the British Museum,
acc.no.1953,0414.2). In 1954 he published
an essay on ‘Chinese Bamboo Carving’ in
Country Life.

1922年，J.W.H.Grice醫生和夫人Kathleen移
居天津，並在天津執業長達30年，直至1952
年回到英國。在此期間，他逐漸蒐集形成了牙
雕和竹雕藝術的重要收藏，並將其藏品中一
大部分贈與倫敦維多利亞和阿爾伯特博物館
和大英博物館（如大英博物館館藏之十七/十
八世紀竹雕梅紋臂擱，藏品編號1953,0414.2
）。其撰寫的一篇關於中國竹雕的文章曾於 315
1954年發表在《Country Life》雜誌上。

The motif of bamboo on wrist rests was a
popular one as the bamboo encapsulated
the literati ideal of moral uprightness. It
bends with the wind but does not break,
symbolising resistance and moral integrity as
well as loyalty. Its hollow interior hides nothing,
indicating honesty. See a related bamboo
wrist rest carved with bamboo, 18th century,
illustrated by Ip Yee and L.C.S.Tam, Chinese
Bamboo Carving, part I, Hong Kong, 1978,
p.331, no.98.

316

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please refer to paragraphs 7 & 8 of the Notice to Bidders at the back of the catalogue. FINE CHINESE ART | 155