Page 60 - Bonhams Fine Chinese Art Nov 2013 Hong Kong

234 Compare a similar but larger example of a robin’s-egg-glazed cong dated
An archaistic robin’s-egg glazed vase, cong to the Qianlong period, in the Qing Court collection within the Palace
18th century Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Monochrome Porcelain. The Complete
The square vessel with a hollowed circular foot rising to a circular mouth Collection of the Treasures of the Palace Museum, Shanghai, 1999,
from a short splayed neck, decorated in raised relief featuring the eight p.209, no.188.
trigrams motif at the edges interspersed between elongated waves
motif, all lustrously covered in a thick and creamy robin’s-egg glaze. 器呈仿玉琮式，圓口、方腹，圈足，通體施爐鈞釉，外壁浮雕八卦紋，
14.4cm high. 富立體感，整體感覺樸實敦厚。
HK$350,000 - 450,000
US$45,000 - 58,000 清宮舊藏一爐鈞釉琮式瓶，比本拍品略高，但形式與本拍品相似，底有
「大清乾隆年製」篆書款，見楊靜榮主編，《故宮博物院藏文物珍品大
十八世紀 爐鈞釉琮式瓶 系：顏色釉》，香港，1999年，頁209，圖版188。

Although there are many archaic remnants of jade cong from the Shang
and Zhou dynasties, it is commonly accepted by the academics that the
earliest cong originated from the Liangzhu culture dating back to almost
3500BC. There are elongated depictions of cong as well as squatted
versions recorded, however a shroud of mystery is cast over the origins
of their representation and purpose of use. Some academics argue that
they were used in ritualistic practices, whereby the cong represents the
earth and its counterpart the bi represents the heavens. The imagery of
a cong must undeniably served an important place in Chinese history
for the iconography has carefully survived through the ages, and was
revered and copied during the Qing dynasty, as shown by the current lot.

58 | Bonhams