Page 62 - Sotheby's Imperial Chiense Porcelain Nov 4 2020 London

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TANG SANCAI - THE SZE YUAN TANG COLLECTION 唐 三彩獅形枕
A RARE SANCAI-GLAZED ‘LION’ PILLOW
TANG DYNASTY 來源
思源堂收藏
powerfully modelled as a ferocious crouching lion seizing
a smaller leopard between its strong paws, with menacing
fangs below wide-open eyes creating a ferocious expression,
the slightly arched body detailed with a stylised curly mane
and incised fur, supporting a platform in the shape of a lobed
lotus leaf incised with a flower, covered overall with a vibrant
mottled and streaked amber, green and cream glaze
Width 15.2 cm, 6 in.
The dating of this lot is consistent with the result of a
thermoluminescence test, Oxford authentication Ltd., no.
C97f20.
£ 60,000-80,000

This pillow is striking for the powerful modelling of the lion type are discussed Osvald Sirén in Chinese Sculpture from the
and can be considered one of the finest examples of its type. Fifth to the Fourteenth Century, p. 435, where he identifies the
The potter’s confidence and artistic sensitivity is evident in lion’s pray as a sheep and attributes the group to workshops
the rendering of the animals’ pose, its convincingly ferocious in Shaanxi province. Sirén illustrates four stone sculptures
expression and the finely detailed mane and bushy eyebrows. of lions slaying a pray, pls a-d, the first from the collection of
The well-controlled application of green enamel that draws David David-Weill, and the second from the Eumorfopoluos
attention to the animal’s facial features makes this piece collection, now in the Louvre Museum, Paris. For a ceramic
particularly special, as the lead-based glazes used on these sculpture of this type, see a sancai lion sold in these rooms,
wares are notoriously viscous and therefore very difficult to 17th December 1996, lot 12.
control. Pillows that feature such powerful depictions of lions are
Lions are not native to China, and in the Tang dynasty they unusual, although a pillow with the lion fashioned in this pose
were imported as tributary gifts from the Western regions of but less finely articulated, was sold twice in our London rooms,
India and Central Asia. Revered for their strength and majestic 12th June 2006, lot 30, and 7th November 2012, lot 214; one
demeanour, lions functioned as guardian figures as well as missing the headrest in the Victoria and Albert Museum,
emblems of power. While depictions of lions as guardians London, is published on the Museum’s website, accession no.
abound in the arts of the Tang dynasty, those that illustrate C.5-1910; and a third is illustrated in The Tsui Museum of Art.
the animal’s ferocious hunting nature are much less common. Chinese Ceramics, vol. I, Hong Kong, 1993, pl. 136. Compare
A small group of free-standing sculptures of lions slaying also a sancai pillow of a crouching lion with similar features,
their pray, made in ceramic and carved from stone, may have from the Yangdetang collection, sold at Christie’s Hong Kong,
provided inspiration for this piece. Stone sculptures of this 6th October 2015, lot 87.

120 Buyers are liable to pay both the hammer price (as estimated above) and the buyer’s premium together with any applicable taxes and Artist’s Resale Right 121
(which will depend on the individual circumstances). Refer to the Buying at Auction and VAT sections at the back of this catalogue for further information.