.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Mythical beasts of this form are known as luduan, legendary creatures capable of distinguishing between good and evil. Because of these qualities incense burners of this form were placed beside or in front of the imperial throne to symbolise that the emperor, protected by these animals, was a virtuous and intelligent ruler. In this function a pair of cloisonné enamel incense burners of this form can be seen in situ in a photograph of the throne in the Hall of Supreme Harmony illustrated in Palaces of the Forbidden City, Hong Kong, 1986, pp. 66-67.
The present lot is rare in its small size, with a closely related example in the collection of the Palace Museum, which is cast with a Qianlong mark and decorated with large champlevé scrolls on the body against a turquoise ground enamelled with scrolling lotus, illustrated in Enamels 3: Cloisonne in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), Compendium of Collection in the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2011, pl. 23.
Compare also with a larger luduan-form censer, modelled with a very similar expression and pierced upward facing ears, in the Shengyang Museum, illustrated in The Prime Cultural Relics Collected by Shenyang Imperial Palace Museum: The Enamel Volume, Shenyang, 2007, p. 93, no. 5.
The present lot is rare in its small size, with a closely related example in the collection of the Palace Museum, which is cast with a Qianlong mark and decorated with large champlevé scrolls on the body against a turquoise ground enamelled with scrolling lotus, illustrated in Enamels 3: Cloisonne in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), Compendium of Collection in the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2011, pl. 23.
Compare also with a larger luduan-form censer, modelled with a very similar expression and pierced upward facing ears, in the Shengyang Museum, illustrated in The Prime Cultural Relics Collected by Shenyang Imperial Palace Museum: The Enamel Volume, Shenyang, 2007, p. 93, no. 5.