LATE MING/EARLY QING DYNASTY, 17TH CENTURY

Details

A FINELY CARVED RHINOCEROS HORN LIBATION CUP
LATE MING/EARLY QING DYNASTY, 17TH CENTURY
Of fluted floral form, carved around the exterior with a band of taotie masks on a keyfret-ground, one side elaborately carved in openwork with a large chi dragon clambering over the rim to form the handle, detailed with a smaller ascending and another descending chi dragon
5 1/4 in. (13.3 cm.) wide

Special notice

Prospective purchasers are advised that several countries prohibit the importation of property containing materials from endangered species, including but not limited to coral, ivory, tortoiseshell and crocodile. Accordingly, prospective purchasers should familiarize themselves with relevant customs regulations prior to bidding if they intend to import this lot into another country.

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Lot Essay

A number of rhinoceros horn cups carved with lobed sides are known, such as the example in the collection of Mr. Michael de Salys Longchamps, illustrated by T. Fok, Connoisseurship of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, Hong Kong, 1999, p. 82, no. 35. A related cup without the beaded mouth rim, from the Songzhutang Collection, is also illustrated, op. cit., p. 52, no. 5; and was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 31 May 2010, lot 1803. It is suggested that the form and design are reminiscent of silver cups of the mid-Ming period, ibid., p. 52.

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