Page 45 - Bonhams Asian Art May2016 UK

A EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTION OF
SCHOLAR’S ROCKS

LOTS 98-106

98
A TAIHU LIMESTONE ‘CLOUD-FORM’ SCHOLAR’S ROCK
Qing Dynasty
The naturally weathered rock with various holes, niches and
overhangs, all forming a elegant mountain side rising from a small base
to a wide top, carved hard wood stand. Including stand: 47cm (18
1/2in) high (2).

£3,000 - 5,000
CNY28,000 - 46,000
HK$33,000 - 55,000

As far back as the Song Dynasty naturally weathered rocks were
collected and displayed for pleasure and by the 17th century individual
rocks were important and respected enough to have portraits
commissioned. Exceptional examples possess good shape, texture
and colour, and have resonance when struck. Given these qualities a
viewer can admire the strength of outline, perhaps seeing a mountain
ridge or a rising cloud within the amorphous mass, and delight in
following the twisting, undulating surface texture with their eyes.
Transplanted from its original location where it was hewn by nature
over thousands of years, a rock sitting on a hard-working scholar’s
desk can represent a whole world in miniature and allow the viewer’s
imagination to run. Rocks are classed according to their origin and
the most revered locations are Lingbi, in Anhui province, Lake Tai,
in Jiangsu and Yingde, in Guangdong. As well as small table top
specimens there are numerous monumental boulders in gardens
around China, including ‘The Auspicious Cloud Capped Peak’ in the
Lingering Garden in Suzhou.

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ASIAN ART | 43