Page 30 - Bonhams Fine Chinese Art London Nov. 2019

Image after Le Musee Chinois de I’Imperatrice Eugenie, Fontainebleau, 1994, fig.17 Equatorial armillary on a dragon-decorated bronze
stand, made by Verbiest for the Kangxi emperor;
image after M.Holdsworth and C.Courtauld, Forbidden
City: The Great Within, London, 2008, p.43

16
A VERY LARGE IMPERIAL GILT-BRONZE REPOUSSÉ MODEL
OF A FIVE-CLAWED DRAGON
18th/19th century
The imposing beast with scaly S-shaped body standing upright with
his two feet clasping two flaming pearls and clouds, with five-clawed
arms raised, the head set with later stag-horn antlers above bushy
brows, bulbous eyes, large flaring nostrils and jaws agape revealing
sharp fangs above the wispy mane.
103cm (40 1/2in) high (excluding horns).

£8,000 - 12,000
CNY71,000 - 110,000

十八/十九世紀 銅鎏金錘鍱遊立像

Provenance: Henry Harrison Getty (1838-1919), by repute The present lot is impressive for its magnificent size and dynamic
Alice Getty (d.1946), by repute modelling. Its size and posture strongly suggest that it would have
Courtenay Morgan, Viscount Tredegar (1867-1934), by repute been part of a support holding perhaps an astronomical or scientific
Evan Morgan, 2nd Viscount Tredegar (1893-1949), by repute instrument. Compare with a large globe, supported by four dragons,
Professor and Mrs Bellerby, by repute Qianlong, illustrated in Life in the Forbidden City of Qing Dynasty,
Mark Dineley (1901-1975) Beijing, 2007, pp.148-149. See also bronze dragons supporting an
Peter Dineley (1938-2018), and thence by descent astronomical instrument illustrated in Forbidden City: The Great Within,
London, 1995, p.43
來源：傳Henry Harrison Getty（1838-1919年）舊藏
傳Alice Getty（卒於1946年）舊藏 A pair of gilt-bronze seated dragons, each with one paw resting on
傳Tredegar子爵Courtenay Morgan（1867-1934年）舊藏 a ball, is in Chateau de Fontainebleau and is illustrated in Le Musee
傳Tredegar子爵二世Evan Morgan（1893-1949年）舊藏 Chinois de I’Imperatrice Eugenie, Fontainebleau, 1994, fig.17. On
傳Bellerby教授及夫人舊藏 display in the Forbidden City are large gilt-bronze dragon placed at hall
Mark Dineley（1901-1975年）舊藏 entrances such as the one seen in situ placed in front of Cining Men
Peter Dineley（1938-2018年）舊藏，並由後人保存迄今 guarding the entrance to Yang Xin Dian (Hall of Mental Cultivation),
illustrated in Life in the Forbidden City, Beijing, 1985, p.26, fig.16.

For details of the charges payable in addition to the final Hammer Price of each Lot
28 | BONHAMS please refer to paragraphs 7 & 8 of the Notice to Bidders at the back of the catalogue.