Page 70 - Bonhams Scholars Art and Instruments Hong Kong December 2, 2021

Li Zizhao (the 12th on the left) at a Qin gathering in Yiyuan,
Suzhou, 1919
李子昭（左十二）於1919年怡園琴會

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A VERY IMPORTANT LACQUERED FENGSHI-STYLE The inscription could be translated as ‘Mr Li Zizhao acquired this
‘JINGTAO’ QIN antique qin in Shanghai, in September of the year of Jiwei (1919), Yi
10th century or earlier Daoren from Sichuan restored this qin and inscribed [this].’
The body gently tapered from the head to the tail with a multiple-
recessed shoulder and waist, supported by two hardwood goose- Li Zizhao (1856-1938) was the most respected qin musician during the
feet (yanzu), the underside with seven hardwood tuning pegs (zhen), 1920s and 1930s. A Sichuan native and former Daoist monk, he spent
the top inlaid vertically with thirteen yellow medal studs (hui), and his early life in the House of Prince Ding in the late Qing Dynasty, where
terminated with hardwood string supporter (longyin), the name of he served as a professional musician and teacher after he secularized
this qin inscribed above the rounded ‘dragon pool’ (longchi), Jingtao from the Daoist temple. He moved to Shanghai and was employed
(Stormy Wave) and signed by Huang Tingjian (1045-1105), a long by the tycoon Zhou Qingyun (1866-1934), who was known for his
inscription incised underneath the rounded ‘phoenix pool’ by Li Zizhao collection of books and qin instruments in the 1910s, where the Prince
(1856-1938) dated corresponding to 1919, the lacquered surface with House had been in decline since the collapse of the Qing Dynasty.
a network of fine snake-belly crackles and ice crackles, bag and box.
Overall 121.6cm（47 1/2in）long；shoulder 20.8cm (8 1/4in) wide； Li quickly attracted the attention of the qin circle in Shanghai and
tail 15cm (6in) wide (3). Suzhou, and was acknowledged by the local practitioner and patrons
as the top qin musician among his contemporaries. His name was
HKD5,000,000 - 8,000,000 listed in first place in the Qinren zhengfanglu (List of Qin Practitioners)
US$640,000 - 1,000,000 which was published in 1937.

十世紀或更早 李子昭舊藏鳳勢式「驚濤」琴 This qin is probably one of the only two known instruments he owned
and played often. Another qin of his, given by Zhou Qingyun, was
Provenance: called Pili (Thunderbolt), a late Qing piece. Thus this ‘Jingtao’ qin
Li Zizhao (1856-1938) Collection probably was his only antique instrument.
Hu Ruosi (1916-2004) Collection
The complex network of crackle through the lacquer of this qin can
來源： only rarely be found on qins later than the Song Dynasty. Compare
李子昭（1856-1938）舊藏 with the lianzhu-style ‘Feiquan’ qin, Tang Dynasty, in the Palace
胡若思（1916-2004）舊藏 Museum, Beijing, which is illustrated by M.Z. Zheng in the Guqin in the
Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2010, pl.4; Compare also
Published and illustrated: with two lianzhu-style ‘Kumu longyin’ qins, Tang Dynasty, one in the
W.J.Chu ed., Nanhu fengyun: Hu Ruosi huaji (The Oeuvre of Hu Chinese National Academy of Art and another in the Freer Gallery of
Ruosi’s Work), Shanghai, 2006, p.220 Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, which are illustrated by Y.Z. Yuan in
J.Xu ed., Zhongguo guqin minjian diancang (Chinese Guqin in Private the Dragon’s Roar: Chinese Literati Musical Instruments in the Freer
Collections), Beijing, 2013, no.91 and Sackler Collection, Washington, 2020, pp. 64 and 77.
Appreciation, Xi’an, 2016, issue 12, p.106

出版及著錄：
諸文進編，《南胡風韻:胡若思畫集》，上海，2006年，頁220
許建編，《中國古琴民間典藏》，北京，2013年，編號91
《藝術品鑒》，西安，2016年，12期，頁106

銘文： 李子昭先生得此古琴於海上，時在己未秋九月，蜀中亦道人
修並記。

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