Page 23 - Bonhams Chinese Art September 2015 NY
P. 23
50
50 The shape of the present vessel is inspired by an archaic bronze
A lArgE ArChAistiC BronzE inCEnsE BurnEr, fu ritual grain container generally known as fu. This form, which may
18th century have been an evolution or even replacement of an earlier ritual vessel
Cast after the archaic form with four splayed corner feet and mythical known as xu, first appeared in the Late Western Zhou period, but was
beast loop handles, the rectangular body with shallow-relief taotie most widespread in the subsequent Eastern Zhou period. Examples
masks set on an incised leiwen ground and punctuated by projecting of Eastern Zhou fu ritual vessels are illustrated by J.So, Eastern Zhou
flanges at the centre of the bands and at the corner edges of the Ritual Bronzes from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, vol. III, New
vessel, all below an incised key-fret pattern beneath the rim, the York, 1995, pp.170-173.
underside with a four-character seal script mark translating as ‘made
by Cao Youlang’. 56cm (22in) wide
£5,000 - 8,000 HK$60,000 - 96,000
CNY48,000 - 77,000
aSiaN aRt | 21
