Page 98 - Important Chiense Ceramics and Works of Art, Christie's.pdf

2927 Continued

Censers of this type might have been used for ritual purposes ‐⏎ऑ卿⏜㯝卿䀦஋⭬卿Ӳ㑷ǯ㘻㵲⻤⇈⇶㞏ἃ஠卿⭬㛑㱈Ǹ೰ǹ
in the Qing court and would have normally been one of the five ໃࣿ㫐शഀ䂆ǯ⫒⧡ងވ⪆ǯ‐⸌㥝㫌㤒㞖㫡〟⡠卿⦞៨⸥⡠
pieces of an altar set, which also includes two candlesticks ݦॶ卿⸌㟏㥝㫌㤒㞖⦞៨⸥⡠ǯ
and two flower vases. The Qianlong Emperor was a devotee
of Tibetan Buddhism and had commissioned the construction ᳖༈⯠⻦Ӷཐ㘆ַ⎏Ӳ㑷‐卿הἃד೉؊଍卿Ꮅ⎑Ⴝ༾ᄠ߿㪀
of numerous Buddhist temples and shrines in Beijing and in ㉑ǯទ‐Ԗ㵲㱈ഀ䂆⡠卿ᬘ㖅ཐ㇦ǯऱ௛⎏ഌഅ㱈⦞៨⸥⡠卿
other areas, each requiring an extensive array of ritual objects
like the current censer. Furthermore, cloisonné enamel censers ࣻ⩠Ӭ։㖅ཎ⎏Գ㪏᪪⦞៨⸥⡠׾卿㊃‐Ὅ⸌卿㇦ ჺٳᘹ
were used for display in the Qing court. The Qianqing gong, ߅‸ 1 #FSHFS ⶬǶ$IJOB厍5IF 5ISFF &NQFSPST Ƿ卿
Hall of Heavenly Purity, for example, has a set of cloisonné 㮰 卿எ 厎औӬԳ㪏᪪׾卿ἃՆ؊ԠӬ卿㇦ ჺ㲞ᳰ߅
enamel censers decorated with lotus blooms displayed in ‸ᘢ༈ࢷ⁒㩴⻦ᙔ⁒Ⅷ৅ݥ㫀Ƕ㞖ྏ⫭⇈⇶଍Ƿ卿எ‸ ⽚厎
front of the Emperor’s throne. A small tripod censer also with սࣿ ჺٳᘹ߅‸ 4JS ) (BSOFS ⶬǶ$IJOFTF BOE +BQBOFTF
upright handles and domed cover but with legs in the form of
elephants is on display in a duobaoge (multi-treasure cabinet) $MPJTPOOs &OBNFMTǷ卿㮰 卿எ Ӭ׾ǯ
in the Shufang zhai, the Hall of Fragrance, see The Forbidden ᳖༈᷂ⱥ䁗അ༾ᡟԋՔ㪀ߛӬㄤⅧ׾卿㇦ ჺ࢈՗߅‸Ƕᘢ
City: Collection of Photographs by Hu Chui, Beijing, 1998, pls.
32 and 63 respectively. ༈厍⫽㢩ᘂᆴה৅㫀Ƿ卿எ‸ ⽚ǯ
The current censer is very similar in design and form to a
number of pieces from the Qing Court Collection, however this
particular piece is unusual as it has a dragon decoration rather
than the more commonly seen scrolling lotus design. See
for example censers decorated with lotus scrolls, including:
a censer of smaller size, lion masks, and a Qianlong mark
but without a lid in the Palace Museum Collection, Beijing,
illustrated by P. Berger, China: The Three Emperors 1662-1795,
London, 2006. p. 139, no. 44; another similar piece also in
the Palace Museum Collection, Beijing, illustrated in Metal-
bodied Enamel Ware, The Complete Collection of Treasures
of the Palace Museum, Hong Kong, 2002, p. 144, no. 138; and
a censer illustrated in Sir H. Garner, Chinese and Japanese
Cloisonné Enamels, London, 1970, p. 92, no. 90.
Comparable pieces at auction include: one of archaistic
design and a Qianlong mark was sold at Christie’s New York,
26 March 2010, lot 1183; a piece also decorated with shou
characters sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 31 May 2010, lot
1969; also a piece decorated with the Eight Trigrams and a
Qianlong mark sold at Sotheby’s London, 8 November 2006,
lot 106.

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