Page 21 - Fine Chinese, Japanese and Buddhist Art September 28, 2018 Galerie Zacke

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A RHINOCEROS HORN ‘HIBISCUS’ LIBATION CUP, MING DYNASTY,
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16 / 17 CENTURY
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The horn of rich and dark chestnut tone with a smooth patina
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China, Ming dynasty, 16 – 17 century
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Crisply carved as a hibiscus flower with the furled petals forming the
cup, the exterior detailed in high relief with flowers and buds entwined
with the stems and star-shaped serrated leaves, all enveloping the sides
and issuing from the openwork foot, the undercut handle consisting of
further buds and stems, on one side with a sinuous chilong interweaving
his body through the stems, the six flower petals on the interior
sharply articulated and punctuated with a small stamen in the center.
Interestingly, the chilong is grasping a lingzhi fungus in its mouth.

The natural shape of the horn used for the making of this fine cup
lends itself particularly well to that of an open flower blossom, and
the carver has transformed the lip end of his material into a complete
hibiscus flower with one stamen in the well. The hibiscus is immediately
recognizable by its stamens which extend far out of the flower. The
carving is detailed and naturalistic, even the interior of the piece is
finished to the highest level with the overlapping petals carved to display
a strong three-dimensional quality. Nature was on the forefront of the
carver’s mind when he rendered this subject matter. Another notable
aspect to the piece is the openwork stand it sits on - shaped as the
stem of the plant from which leaves and buds grow. The handle is also
imaginatively fashioned in the form of a stem reaching up to the top of
the petals.

Shape: Libation cup
Weight: 167,8 grams 㖶ẋ䈨䈃奺晽坕漵俛”吝剙”㜗炻16-17ᶾ䲨
Dimensions: Length 13,7 cm 䈨䈃奺炻⊭㻧㤝⤥
Condition: Good original and unrestored condition with some wear, 䱦㸃䘬ⶍ㱽炻⇣䔓↢⬴㔜䘬吝剙炻⇑䓐㌚崟䘬剙彖㥳ㆸ㔜ᾳ㜗⫸ˤ⽆⸽悐䓇
two very small nicks to chilong’s tail, a microscopic hairline and several 攟䘬匾剥炻⊭墡叿㜗⫸䘬⢾⚵炻悐↮⟹✳䁢㜗䁛ˤ䦨㚱䘬䈨䈃奺岒㕁炻䳘兑
tiny nibbles. One small segment of the openwork stand is missing. It is 䘬檀㴖晽炻㏕惵ᶨ⎒冯匾⸡圵䁢ᶨ橼䘬坕漵炻坕漵◜⎤叿ᶨ㛝曰剅炻⯽䎦㬌
extremely rare to find a Ming cup of this size in such an untouched and ⑩䘬檀屜ᶵ὿ˤ
intact condition! 㷦䃞⣑ㆸ䘬忈✳炻Ỹẍ厗渿䳘兑䘬㈨㱽炻㍉吝剙剙䒋㥳䭱ㆸ㜗⫸炻ᶵᾅ㚱
Provenance: United Kingdom private collection. ⍇㛔䘬㧋尴炻㚜冯䈨奺䌐䈡䘬岒⛘炻栗⼿冒䃞䃉忽␴ˤ
⼊䉨烉䤅⢥㜗⼊
Literature comparison: For examples of rhinoceros horn cups with 慵慷烉167.8⃳
hibiscus, see one in the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin, published in Jan ⯢⮠烉攟13.7⍀䰛
Chapman in The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, London, 1999, ⑩䚠列⤥炻㛒䴻ảỽᾖ墄ˤ坕漵⯦悐㚱ℑᾳ朆ⷠ⮷䘬塪䕽炻ᶨ⮷悐↮䘬㴖
pl. 206; another, formerly owned by Tradescant the Elder and presented 晽㛸㕁仢⣙炻⯙㖶ẋ忁ᾳ⣏⮷䘬䈨奺㜗Ἦ婒炻傥⥍┬⬴㔜ᾅ⬀炻⮎⛐朆ⷠ
to the University of Oxford by Elias Ashmole, now in the Ashmolean 暋⼿ˤ
Museum, Oxford, included in Derek Gillman, ‘A Source of Rhinoceros 劙⚳䥩Ṣ㓞啷
Horn Cups in the Late Ming Dynasty’, Orientations, December 1984, 㔯䌣⍫侫烉⎎ᶨẞ吝剙䈨奺㜗炻⎗⍫侫ỵ㕤悥㝷㜿䘬↯㕗䈡Ƹ㭼㚧⚾㚠棐棐
p. 15, fig. 8; and a third, from the collection of Dr. Ip Yee illustrated 啷炻庱㕤Jan Chapman叿ἄ䘬˪ᷕ⚳晽䈨䈃奺喅埻普˫炻ΐ㔎炻1999⸜炻⚾
in Dr. Ip Yee, ‘Chinese Rhinoceros Horn Carvings’, International Asian 䇰206ˤ⎎ᶨẞ℠啷㕤䈃㳍䘬旧Ṩ卓㜿⌂䈑棐炻㚦庱㕤Derek Gillman䘬叿
Antiques Fair, Hong Kong, 1982, p. 36, cat. no. 29; and another from the ἄ˪㘂㖶㗪㛇䘬䈨䈃奺喅埻˫炻Orientations 炻1984⸜12㚰炻⚾嘇8ˤ⎎ᶨẞ
Murray bequest and now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, is ⇯㗗叱佑慓䓇䘬䥩Ṣ㓞啷炻⎗⍫侫ṾᾳṢ叿ἄ˪Chinese Rhinoceros Horn
illustrated in Craig Clunas, Chinese Carving, London, 1996, fig. 31, where Carvings˫炻International Asian Antiques Fair↢䇰炻楁㷗炻1982⸜炻䫔36枩炻
two intertwining stems are used to form the base of the vessel. 䶐嘇29ˤ⎎ᶨẞ䎦啷㕤ΐ㔎䘬䵕⣂⇑Ṇ冯刦ỗ䈡⌂䈑棐炻庱㕤Craig Clunas
叿ἄ˪ᷕ⚳晽⇣˫炻ΐ㔎炻1996炻⚾嘇31ˤ
Auction result comparison: A cup where the stalks of a lotus plant were 栆Ụ㉵⑩烉喯⭴㭼˪Edward T. Chow and Franklin Chow䍵啷⑩˫炻楁
made into a ring-base for the vessel, from the collections of Edward 㷗炻2011⸜4㚰8㖍炻䈑⑩䶐嘇2715ˤ⎎⢾怬㚱喯⭴㭼˪ᷕ⚳䒟☐⍲喅埻䍵
T. Chow and Franklin Chow, was sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 8th ⑩˫ 2013⸜10㚰8㖍炻楁㷗炻㉵⑩3244嘇ˤ
April 2011, lot 2715. FINE CHINESE CERAMICS AND WORKS OF ART.
Sotheby’s, 08 OCTOBER 2013, HONG KONG, lot 3244. (for a similar EstimateġEUR 6.000,-
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hibiscus and chilong cup dated to the 16 century) Starting price EUR 3.000,-

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