Page 134 - Liesurely Life Fine Objects Christies Hong Kong May 2018

2956

A RARE IMPERIAL INSCRIBED DUAN INK STONE
QIANLONG YUMING MARK AND OF THE PERIOD (1736-1795)
Of oval shape, the ink stone is carved with a smooth grinding
surface with an olive-green ‘eye’, the crescent-shaped ink well
surrounded by bosses in imitation of a drum, further carved with
pairs of confronting chilong on top and below. The reverse is carved
with a sunken medallion enclosing a horse-like mythical animal
with two horns on the back in relief. The sides are carved with an
inscription ending with Qianlong yuming ‘Imperially inscribed by
Qianlong’, followed by two seals guxiang ‘fragrance of antiquity’
and taipu ‘unassuming’.
5 √ in. (14.9 cm.) long
HK$300,000-500,000 US$39,000-64,000

PROVENANCE
The Tsui Museum of Art
An almost identical ink stone with the same decoration and inscription
is illustrated in Xiqing Yanpu ‘A Compendium of the Qianlong
Emperor’s Imperial Ink Stone Collection’ (fig. 1). The description of
the ink stone in Xiqing Yanpu states that the mythical animal depicted back
on the back is feihuang, who submitted itself to the legendary Yellow 背面
Emperor. The Yellow Emperor was credited to the creation of the ‘drum
chariot’, which could effectively measure the distance a chariot had
travelled. Hence the drum-shaped surface and feihuang motif depicted
on this ink stone are symbolic of the Qianlong Emperor’s reverence for
antiquities and the fabled Yellow Emperor.

清乾隆 端石雕飛黃硯 「乾隆御銘」楷書刻款
inscription
銘文
來源
徐氏藝術館珍藏
橢圓形硯，硯質細膩，硯堂雀眼、火捺、青花俱備。圓形硯池似鼓形，
邊飾鼓釘紋一周，硯池上下分刻螭龍兩對。硯背圓形開光內，陽雕飛黃
圖案，其形象出自《淮南子》卷六〈覽冥訓〉之東漢高誘註：「飛黃，
乘黃也。出西方，狀如狐，背上有角，壽千歲。」《欽定四庫全書西清
硯譜》卷十九載「舊端石飛黃硯」與本拍品相類（圖一），其說明曰：
「考《淮南子》云，黃帝時，飛黃服皁。又《黃帝內傳》稱，帝製記里
鼓車。是硯背刻飛黃，而面為鼓形。當取義於斯」，則拍品硯池雕做鼓
形，硯背刻飛黃，皆出自古義。今成語「飛黃騰達」，即指此獸。
硯側邊刻御題硯銘：「質細如棉，水岩石子兮；面製鼓形，喻車記里
兮；背刻飛黃，服周方軌兮；用左同文，伊犁尺咫兮。乾隆御銘。」尾
刻「古香」、「太璞」印章紋。

fig. 1 Xiqing Yanpu
圖一 《西清硯譜》

132