Page 21 - Christie's Fine Chinese Qianlong's Bronze Auction September 13, 2018

Fig. 2 Ban Gui, middle Western Zhou dynasty. The Capital Museum Collection. After Fig. 3 Zi Gui, early Western Zhou dynasty. The National Museum of China
Zhongguo qingtongqi quanji (Complete Collection of Chinese Bronzes), vol. 6: Western Collection. After Wenwu, 1959, no. 12, p. 59.
Zhou 2, Beijing, 1997, no. 15.
圖三 西周早期 鼒簋 國家博物館藏
圖二 西周中期 班簋 首都博物館藏

In discussing the present vessel, Jessica Rawson commented, “Animal-like legs on 羅森論述本例時曾提到：「簋之獸足，似乎源於一
gui seem to have developed from elaborate handles used on a few gui… On later 小批簋的精美雙耳……其後，精美的簋耳已被省
gui the elaborate handles were omitted, attention being focused instead on the 略，重點已像本例般轉至與圈足相連的簋足。」 觀
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legs attached to the footring, as here.” Early examples of legged gui vessels vary
乎早期的四足簋，其器足樣式與接合點皆變化多
in the shape of the legs and their point of attachment. In some vessels, the legs are
端。有的簋足為柱形，或作幾何形，甚或摹寫動
columnar, in others they claim a geometric shape, and in yet others they assume a
物，如象鼻、獸足 (如本拍品) 等，不一而足。（圖一
zoomorphic form, whether the trunk of an elephant or the leg of an animal (as in
至三）有些簋的雙耳增至四耳，而連器合鑄的四耳
this gui vessel). (Figs. 1-3) In some instances, the number of handles was increased
from two to four, with the integrally cast legs descending from the bottom of 則延長為四足，就此可證諸哈佛大學藝術博物館藏
the handles, as seen in the columnar legs of the Chen Chen Fu Yi Gui 臣辰父 臣辰父己簋的柱形器足 (館藏號1944.57.8.a-b)， 6
乙簋 in the collection of the Harvard Art Museums (1944.57.8.a-b) or in the 香港佳士得於2003年拍出的清宮舊藏青銅簋之
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columnar legs—albeit each with hoof at the bottom—of a gui that once was in 柱形足亦屬此例，惟其足底作蹄狀。 (圖四）其後，
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the Qing Palace collection and that was sold at Christie’s, Hong Kong, in 2003. 7
器足漸與圈足相連，數目間或減為三足，就此可參
(Fig. 4) Over time, the legs came to be attached to the footring and occasionally
照上海博物館 、舊金山亞洲藝術博物館 及普林
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were reduced in number to just three, as evinced by a gui in the collection of the
斯頓大學美術館 藏青銅簋。本拍品的器足造型
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Shanghai Museum, another in the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco (B60B893),
and yet another in the Princeton University Art Museum (y1965-57). In fact, 生動，接合點一目了然，與其上的雙耳簋身渾然天
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the shapely legs, their clearly defned points of attachment, and their harmonious 成，誠屬有足青銅簋的精絕之作。
relationship to the handled bowl they support rank the present vessel among the
雖然饕餮紋是商代青銅禮器最常用的裝飾題材，
most aesthetically successful of the legged gui.
但鳳鳥紋、龍紋或蛇紋等亦大行其道。除了「具象」
Although the taotie mask 饕餮紋 was the decorative motif most frequently 紋飾，商代青銅器還結合了各式各樣的抽象、幾何
encountered on bronze ritual vessels from the Shang dynasty, other motifs
及非具象圖案，從T形勾連紋、波折紋或燕尾紋，以
were popular as well, including long-tailed birds, dragon-like forms, and
至扉棱、斜方格乳釘雷紋等皆可得見。及至西周，
even snakes. Apart from those “representational” motifs, a variety of abstract,
不少題材仍風行不衰，具象題材多有革新，而抽象
non-representational, geometric motifs also appear on Shang bronzes, from
題材基本上仍偏於傳統和保守，但其組合與表現
interlocking T-forms and zig-zag, or chevron, patterns to vertical ribs and
diamond-and-boss patterns. Long forgotten, the meaning of such decorative 形式亦略有調整。2012年3月22-23日，紐約佳士
schemes, if any, has been lost to the mists of time for both geometric and 得拍出一例商代晚期青銅簋 (拍品編號1507)，器
representational types. 身飾斜方格乳釘雷紋，上下襯一道細窄聯珠紋，此
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