Page 195 - Christie's Leisurely Life May 29, 2019 Hong Kong

fig. 1 Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing fig. 2 Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing
எӬ ࢈՗ᘢ༈ࢷ⁒㩴⻦৅ எՀ ࢈՗ᘢ༈ࢷ⁒㩴⻦৅

3032 Continued
This unique moulded gourd flask combines motifs from ᫉᧘ㅳ≒Ꮣ೭㬳჎⧎㇦卿ַἃ໌׾卿ݯӳ⡠㱈う㏘ԋ㇛卿㰆▔
the East and the West, and is a great example showing ߅Գ㪏⎑Ⴝཌ᪹ᰲ⻱ワ⎏⯞㑪ǯ᪹ᰲ⯇㺩㦈ஙԳ㪏༈ᅡԋࢦߎ
Qianlong Emperor’s interests in introducing European motifs ᱁リ卿჎ᛓംஇ۔ᘰ೥჌ߪԋஇ⎏㲛㚁◶⁒卿⩧㙁㗤⽔Ԯᝳ⯇
on Chinese objects. European clocks were very popular in
Qianlong Emperor’s court, and were often brought as gifts by Ⴀ⎏ڔ㦈⽔卿Ӷֿ⯇Ⴀㅳה㦈㣅卿Ԯཇ㧰㏎㏙༈ԋംஇ㦈㣅⎏
European missionaries. The Imperial workshop, Zaobanchu, ⣠ـԿ໺ǯ࢈՗ᘢ༈ࢷ⁒㩴⻦Ӭ։Գ㪏᪪ណ᧊ူ㠩᰻䀦ໃ⏎Ӳ
also had its own clock-making department which produced ഩ㦈 ވˏ 卿ᛓڔ㦈⽔⊇᪹ᰲ㦈⎏ംᬄ卿᳎㜩㦈⏎Ǯ㦈♺ᇌ⢑
clocks and provided maintenance for the clocks in the Palace. ㅛ⩧Ꮀ卿ݯ㦈⏎⎏௛߰⯝᫉≒଍ӳ⎏㦈⏎⡠㱈㬳჎⏟ַǯ
A brass-coated wooden tower clock in the collection of Palace
Museum, Beijing (fig. 1), has a European casing, but with the ೭⎏औӬ㬷ӳߺ໭ݥᛓԋஇ۔⢴⡠㱈 ⩞ຽ㳾⁇ǯᶴࠫशǶߛ
clock dial made in the Palace workshop. The clock face is մ۔Ƿ㉃㖊厍ĝ⩞ຽ㇛㙚卿㨸ռཧ੧ឃ㇦ᝳ⡻᭔᱙㨸卿⩧⩞ຽ
stylistically similar to that on the current gourd.
៧ԧ㬪⁇⩧㙞ǯĞ㘺ٖ⩞ຽ㳾⁇⡠㱈Ԯ୬⩧ㄴघڔǴ⡻᭔ែ
On the reverse of the flask is decorated with an altogether very ׹ǵ卿༡ዪ▼⇧卿⩧Գ㪏ཌ᫉⡠㱈፽㊃㬳჎੧ዴ卿ᝪஙӬٖǶ⤆
Chinese motif - that of Laozi riding on a buffalo. Legend has ⢵⩞ຽ㳾⁇Ƿ ވ̕ ࣍㕻ӳݦᄟ㯪㉼ू㉵Ԡǯ
it that when he reached the venerable age of one hundred and
sixty, he decided to leave China for the West. The gate keeper
at Hangu Pass, Yin Xi, saw a cloud of purple vapor arriving
from the East, and realized that an important sage is about to
pass through his gate. He convinced Laozi to write down his
teachings before he left, which became the Daoist canon, the
Daodejing. This motif, often called Ziqi donglai (Purple vapor
arriving from the East), is a very auspicious motif in Chinese
art, and one that Qianlong emperor was undoubtedly familiar
with, having composed two poems on a kesi scroll depicting
this motif (fig. 2).

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