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Lot Essay
The inscription on the cover of the wood box includes a title, Gu zu cong (Ancient zu cong), written in seal script and picked out in gilding, followed by a lengthy inscription in clerical script suggesting that the current jade cong could have been used as a weight, referencing the Kaogongji (Records of Examination of Craftsmen), a classic work on science and technology in ancient China compiled at the end of the Spring and Autumn period (771-476 BC), in which it suggests that zu cong were used as weights. The inscription is followed by the signature of Wu Dacheng.
Wu Dacheng (1835-1902), a major figure in late Qing politics and culture, was a senior government official, and distinguished scholar, artist, collector and art patron. Having passed his metropolitan examination in 1868, his government service included serving as governor of Guangdong and Hunan provinces. Among his many accomplishments in scholarship and art were his studies of scriptions on ancient bronze and stone objects; his refined calligraphy and painting; and his formation of a massive collection of art and antiquities. These activities had an enormous influence on collecting in the modern era, and his grandson, Wu Hufan (1894-1968), was one of the most influential collectors of twentieth-century China.
Wu Dacheng (1835-1902), a major figure in late Qing politics and culture, was a senior government official, and distinguished scholar, artist, collector and art patron. Having passed his metropolitan examination in 1868, his government service included serving as governor of Guangdong and Hunan provinces. Among his many accomplishments in scholarship and art were his studies of scriptions on ancient bronze and stone objects; his refined calligraphy and painting; and his formation of a massive collection of art and antiquities. These activities had an enormous influence on collecting in the modern era, and his grandson, Wu Hufan (1894-1968), was one of the most influential collectors of twentieth-century China.