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Lot Essay
The image of a horse rolling on its back is a symbol of freedom and release from constraint (as suggested by the saddle). The concept of liberation is further accentuated by the inscription.
The present bottle is a masterpiece of the bolder style of the Suzhou school known as the Zhiting School. It is characterised by extraordinary confidence of execution conceived in bold planes of relief of considerable depth, particularly for so tiny a bottle. It also displays two different styles of rock work from the school. In the foreground, in front of the rolling horse, is a superbly crafted, entirely realistic convoluted rock. It is naturalistically carved and finished and distinctly three-dimensional, without emphasis on any particular plane. On the back, where the colour is used so evocatively as a rock face behind the gnarled tree, we see the other style of rock work. Here, although still three-dimensional and realistically finished, the conception is of a raised plane, superbly polished, its edges alone defining it as rock work. It is set on a ground of similar rocks which are disposed horizontally, in which setting the monkey is seen. Where this style of multiple-plane three-dimensionality is employed, the ubiquitous cloud rim at the shoulders also tends to be in deeper relief and disposed in planes, as it is here.
The masterful use of colour, including fading patches which blend into the ground colour, the confident carving and the brilliant formal conception of this example place it amongst the very finest of the school. For such a tiny bottle, it has an exceptional sense of grandeur and depth. The depth of carving also explains another occasional characteristic of this school: limited hollowing. This bottle is sufficiently well hollowed to hold ample snuff for its size, but to have hollowed it any further would have limited the depth of carving available to create the exterior planes.
Another masterly stroke here is the continuation of the design beneath the foot to complete the use of the darker colouring which forms the convoluted rock work. This is a delightful feature shared by a few other superb Suzhou bottles.
The present bottle is a masterpiece of the bolder style of the Suzhou school known as the Zhiting School. It is characterised by extraordinary confidence of execution conceived in bold planes of relief of considerable depth, particularly for so tiny a bottle. It also displays two different styles of rock work from the school. In the foreground, in front of the rolling horse, is a superbly crafted, entirely realistic convoluted rock. It is naturalistically carved and finished and distinctly three-dimensional, without emphasis on any particular plane. On the back, where the colour is used so evocatively as a rock face behind the gnarled tree, we see the other style of rock work. Here, although still three-dimensional and realistically finished, the conception is of a raised plane, superbly polished, its edges alone defining it as rock work. It is set on a ground of similar rocks which are disposed horizontally, in which setting the monkey is seen. Where this style of multiple-plane three-dimensionality is employed, the ubiquitous cloud rim at the shoulders also tends to be in deeper relief and disposed in planes, as it is here.
The masterful use of colour, including fading patches which blend into the ground colour, the confident carving and the brilliant formal conception of this example place it amongst the very finest of the school. For such a tiny bottle, it has an exceptional sense of grandeur and depth. The depth of carving also explains another occasional characteristic of this school: limited hollowing. This bottle is sufficiently well hollowed to hold ample snuff for its size, but to have hollowed it any further would have limited the depth of carving available to create the exterior planes.
Another masterly stroke here is the continuation of the design beneath the foot to complete the use of the darker colouring which forms the convoluted rock work. This is a delightful feature shared by a few other superb Suzhou bottles.