Page 124 - SOTHEBYS MARCH 18 AND 19 2025

Adorned with swirling taotie masks, glaring out in protection, 此高古青銅鼎形制古樸宏偉，獸面銳目環視，
the present vessel represents a grand and imposing example 氣勢巍然。
of an ancient Chinese icon - the bronze ding.
三足鼎，最早見於陶器，製於近八千年前新石器時
Vessels of this type, composed of bowls on three pointed 代，為中國最古老陶器之一。及至青銅時代，工藝精
legs, were among the earliest pottery vessels produced in 進，匠人仿古陶器鑄成青銅鼎，雙耳高足，既為實
China’s Neolithic period, almost eight thousand years ago. 用，亦具威儀。最早期青銅鼎僅屬尋常炊器，至商代
In the Bronze Age, as artisans moved beyond earthenware,
it was the present ding form with two looped handles and 演變成重要禮器，自此成爲信仰與文化權力象徵，
grand trunk-like legs, that they turned to as a functional 用於祭祀儀式，或貴族墓葬禮器，即使歷經千載，
and visually striking innovation. From its humble origins as 猶令觀者生肅然起敬。
a receptacle designed to sit above a fire source, the Shang 鼎者，古代文明重器，古今歷代皆奉為王權與中華遠
dynasty saw these bronze ding transform into something
far more fundamental – striking symbols of religious and 古文明之象徵，歷代仿製不斷，鼎之高足形制，以瓷
cultural power. Used by shamans in esoteric rituals now lost 質仿製其實甚難，然而此器型意涵深遠，瓷匠唯有迎
to the sands of time and buried with the dead in only the most 難而上。南宋浙江龍泉、晚明江西景德鎮、清代福建
distinguished tombs, even millennia later these grand vessels 德化，皆以鼎形香爐為重要器型，至今仍深受藝匠及
– cast with boldly rendered high-relief iconography – continue 藏家珍重。
to strike the beholder with a sense of awe and majesty.
此鼎鼎腹鑄高古金文「北單」二字，標明此鼎歸屬
The close association of this ding form with antiquity 「北單」氏族，此族確切身分雖然未明，然而多件
preserved its legacy in later dynasties as a symbol of 出土重要青銅器均屬此族，而甲骨文又有記載東、
kingship, power and China’s ancient roots. Although its 南、西單等氏族，各處皆顯示北單或為大族，財雄
tall legs make reproduction in ceramics a challenge, the 而勢大。關於北單銘文詳論，及鑄相關北單銘文之
enduring legacy of the ding left potters with little choice but
to contend with its sculptural form. As incense burners, 青銅方彝，可參考Robert W. Bagley，《Shang Ritual
vessels of ding form belonged to the regular repertoire of Bronzes in the Arthur M. Sackler Collections》，華盛頓
the manufactories at Longquan in Zhejiang in the Southern 特區，1987年，頁428-433，圖版77。
Song (1127-1279), at Jingdezhen in Jiangxi in the late Ming 另可參考一例，與本品幾乎完全相同，載於Alexander
(1368-1644), and at Dehua in Fujian in the Qing dynasty
(1644-1911) and continue to inspire artisans and collectors C. Soper，Early, Middle and Late Shang:A Note,《Artibus
alike to this day. Asiae》，卷28，1966年，圖11，1970年4月14日售於
倫敦蘇富比，編號54；另有一例，原屬H. K.Burnet
At the heart of the broad bowl of the present vessel lies and Count Antoine Seilern收藏，1941年4月4日售於倫
an inscription cast in antiquity, attributing this ding to the 敦蘇富比，編號368，圖見William Watson，《Ancient
Beishan (‘Northern Shan’) clan. While the precise identity
of this group remains unclear, the wealth of other important Chinese Bronzes》，倫敦，1962年，圖版15a，後易手
bronze vessels attributed to them and the identification 於1982年6月17日倫敦佳士得，編號7。
of the neighboring East, South and West Shan groups in
oracle bone inscriptions suggest that the Shan likely refers
to a specific ancient polity of considerable wealth and
influence. For a broader discussion of Beishan marks and a
bronze fangyi bearing a related Beishan ge mark, see Robert
W. Bagley, Shang Ritual Bronzes in the Arthur M. Sackler
Collections, Washington, D.C., 1987, pp 428-433, pl. 77.
Compare an almost identical ding of this design, illustrated
in Alexander C. Soper, ‘Early, Middle and Late Shang: A
Note’, Artibus Asiae, vol. XXVIII, 1966, fig. 11 and sold in our
London rooms, 14th April 1970, lot 54; and another closely
related example from the collections of H. K. Burnet and
Count Antoine Seilern sold in our London rooms, 4th April
1941, lot 368, illustrated in William Watson, Ancient Chinese
Bronzes, London, 1962, pl. 15a, and sold again at Christie’s
London, 17th June 1982, lot 7.

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