Page 52 - Bonhams May 2022 Arrow Vases

14
A VERY RARE IMPERIAL PISTOL GUN-BARRELL
Wanli/Tianqi
The cast-iron barrel of slightly tapered rounded form, drilled from
solid steel, the surface finely damascened in silver with stylised
foliage between the front and rear sight, and inlaid with three Sanskrit
characters reading Om Ah Hum above two lines of Chinese characters
reading tidu junwu jianguan juchang dudu Cao, jianzao dusi Wang
Zhichen between the rear sight and hammer, the reserve incised with
a Chinese number two and a craftsman's name reading Pan Shanzai,
the the lock plate of yellow metal, stands.
38cm (15in) long. (3).
HKD600,000 - 800,000
US$77,000 - 100,000

明萬曆/天啟 王之臣監造御製䤹銀手銃鎗管
Inscriptions: (front) 'Provincial Commander Cao of Military and Civil
affairs in Charge of the Department of Works' and 'Supervisor of the
Manufacturing Department Wang Zhichen'
(back) 'two' and 'Pan Shanzai'
銘文： （正面）「提督軍務兼管局廠都督曹」「監造都司王之臣」
（背面）「弍」「潘善在」

Muskets were introduced to China in the Jiaqing period of the Ming The Wang Zhichen mentioned in the inscription as 'Supervisor of
dynasty, whereas the time when pistols were produced in China the Manufacturing Department', was a native of Tongguan County,
remains unknown. The present lot is different from the standard Shaanxi Province. He achieved his jinshi degree in the 23rd year of the
slender 'bird gun' or arquebus of the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Wanli reign (1595). In the second year of the Tianqi reign (1622), he
thickness is moderate and length is more like a pistol or hand held served in the military department as Imperial inspector of Xuanfu. In the
gun. There is no comparable pistol published or recorded in a public or fifth year of Tianqi, he was promoted to the chief servant of the Ministry
private collection, and it can perhaps be said to be the earliest Chinese of War, and served as Governor of Jiliao. In the sixth year, he served as
pistol. the Minister of the Ministry of War and the chief deputy censor. He was
recalled back to the capital however, in the first year of the Chongzhen
The three Sanskrit characters 'Om ah hum' on the body of the gun reign (1628) and implicated after the fall from grace of the powerful
is the mantra of the Vajra Master of Tibetan Tantric Buddhism, which eunuch Wei Zhongxian (1568-1627), whereupon he was forced to
represents the three secrets and three bodies of the Buddha. Porcelain retire from public service.
from the Yongle and Xuande periods were often decorated with this
mantra. During the Wanli reign of the late Ming period, the emperor Guns such as muskets and the arquebus were introduced into China
abandoned the Daoism of his predecessor, the Jiajing emperor, and via two routes: the Portuguese from the sea in the south, and the
the Sanskrit mantra began to appear again on various objects. Ottomans from the West overland. In respect of the overland route,
the earliest guns can be traced back to the Zhengde period, when
The silver inscription reads 'Provincial Commander Cao of Military and Turpan annexed Hami. The Ming dynasty rushed to help Hami but
Civil affairs in Charge of the Department of Works'. The Department was repelled by firearms obtained by Turpan from Turkey. In the Ming
of Works was a subdivision of the Bureau of Military Affairs, one of the dynasty, the Ottoman empire was referred to as Lumi (perhaps deriving
Eight Bureau of the Ming Court run by eunuchs. In the Ming dynasty, from Rum). Zhao Shizhen (active 1552-1611) in his treatise Shen qi pu
it was not unusual for eunuchs to supervise military affairs as they ('Record of Sacred Instruments') notes a 'Lumi gun', the illustration of
could counter-balance the power of civil and military officials and report which is similar to the present lot. See Zhao Shizhen, Ming qi pu, Wanli
directly to the emperor. During the Zhengde reign, for example, there 23rd year (1598), Collection of the National Library of Taiwan, p.11.
was the eunuch Zhang Zhong, supervisor of the Royal Stables, who
participated in the quelling of Prince Ning's rebellion. Therefore, the
Cao in the inscription probably refers to a eunuch in charge of the
military staff bureau.

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