A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF A FOREIGNER

17TH/18TH CENTURY

Details

A GILT-BRONZE FIGURE OF A FOREIGNER
17TH/18TH CENTURY
Made as an arrow vase for the game of touhu, the bearded Asiatic foreigner is shown swinging his arms as he dances, his right foot supported on the raised paw of a Buddhist lion lying on its back on top of the openwork hexagonal base, and wearing a belted coat, worn open in front to expose his bare torso, and tall boots. The ends of the sleeves have circular openings, as does the top of the hollow head, which is fitted with a coiled, conical hat-form cover.
19 in. (48.2 cm.) high

Provenance

Willard D. Straight Collection, acquired before 1914.
The India Club House Collection, New York.

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Lot Essay

Other bronze arrow vases of this type, made for playing the game of touhu, which similarly include a foreign merchant of Western Asiatic type, have been published. Each of these figures has a hollowed head and hollowed sleeves. One where the foreigner's foot rests on the head of a recumbent lion as he holds aloft two cylinders at different heights, with two others tied to his body, is illustrated in Oriental Works of Art, The Oriental Art Gallery, London, June 1995, no. 40, where it is dated 16th century. Another related figure, which also has a Buddhist lion on the base, was sold at Sotheby's Paris, 18 December 2009, lot 255. See, also the figure from the Robert H. Blumenfield Collection sold at Christie's New York, 25 March 2010, lot 866, which was dated 17th century. For a full discussion of the game of touhu, see C. Mackenzie and I. Finkel, eds., Asian Games: The Art of Contest, Asia Society, New York, 2004, pp. 274-81.

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