QIANLONG PERIOD (1736-1795)

Details

A VERY RARE FINELY CARVED CINNABAR LACQUER 'WANG XIZHI' BRUSH POT
QIANLONG PERIOD (1736-1795)
The circular brush pot stands on four ruyi-shaped feet and is intricately carved with a continuous scene around the exterior with the calligrapher Wang Xizhi sitting in a pagoda by the river leaning on the railing, watching a flock of geese swimming on water. The opposite bank depicts a young attendant crossing the bridge holding a qin, the riverscape is decorated with verdant trees and fantastic rocks.
4 ¼ in. (10.8 cm.) high

Provenance

Spink & Son Ltd., London, before 1983
Thomas Navratil, Zurich
Sydney Moss Ltd., London, before 1999

Literature

Spink & Son Ltd., Minor Arts of China, London, 1983, p. 15, no. 10
Sydney Moss Ltd., Escape from the Dusty World, London, 1999, pp. 218-219, no. 59

Lot Essay

The current brushpot exemplifies the 18th-century lacquer carving style, where sharp edged carving is prevalent with an emphasis on fine details. The subject of Wang Xizhi watching geese is particularly fitting for a brush pot, since he was supposed to have developed his unique calligraphic style by watching the graceful swimming of geese. A very similar brush pot in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is illustrated in The Palace Museum: Peking, London, 1982, pl. 170. Another brush pot with a Qianlong mark carved with the subject of Wang Xizhi exchanging a goose with his calligraphy, is in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Carving the Subtle Radiance of Colors, Taipei, 2008, no. 149. Compare also, the brush pot with Jiaqing mark illustrated in Zhongguo meishu quanji, vol 8., no. 187. A brush pot of the same form carved with scholars playing qin was sold at Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 8 October 2006, lot 1095.

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