Page 11 - 2020 October 8 HK Fine Classical Paintings

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PROPERTY FROM THE ESTATE OF A PRIVATE SOUTHEAST ASIAN 清十八世紀
COLLECTOR
青花釉裏紅高士四藝圖洗口瓶
A FINE AND LARGE UNDERGLAZE-BLUE AND
COPPER-RED ‘SEVEN SAGES OF THE BAMBOO
GROVE’ VASE
QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY
well decorated with a continuous scene of the Seven Sages of
the Bamboo Grove with attendants nearby, one figure depicted
playing the qin whilst another three are gathered around a
game of chess, between finely rendered friezes encircling the
waisted neck and splayed foot, all below a further floral scroll
band along the rim and painted in underglaze blue with accents
picked out in copper red
48 cm, 18⅞ in.
HK$ 800,000-1,000,000
US$ 104,000-130,000

This large vase, finely painted with an idyllic scene depicting
the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove, demonstrates the
technical proficiency of the 18th century craftsmen. Not only is
the painting on the vessel precisely and meticulously executed
with fine details rendered in copper red, the skillful control
of the highly unstable copper-red pigment is exceptionally
impressive as it could easily run or fire to a much less striking
tone during the firing process.
The form of the current vase is likely to be modelled on the
cylindrical rouleau vases made popular during the Kangxi reign,
with the straight outlines of the prototypes replaced with more
rounded and generous proportions. The portrayal of the Seven
Sages of the Bamboo Grove, a group of scholars of the Wei
dynasty (220-265) who had renounced their official status
and career in protest against corruption, is a popular subject
in the 18th century and one that reflects the way in which
contemporaneous ideology was heavily steeped in Daoist
beliefs and thoughts.
While no identical example depicting the Seven Sages of the
Bamboo Grove appears to be recorded, there are comparable
examples similarly decorated with Daoist motifs. See a slightly
shorter example with a less bulbous body and decorated with
the Three Star Gods, sold in these rooms, 28th November
2019, lot 15, from the collection of Sir Quo-Wei Lee. Compare
also two slightly shorter examples with Qianlong seal marks
and of the period, the first (46.2 cm) decorated with deer
and pine trees from the Wang Xing Lou collection, published
in Imperial Perfection. The Palace Porcelain of Three Chinese
Emperors, Hong Kong, 2004, pl. 27; and the other (45 cm)
painted with the Three Star Gods, from the collection of Ernest
Grandidier, now in the Musée Guimet, Paris, no. G 4280.

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