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The family of General Joseph W. Stilwell (1883-1946) has enjoyed a long and deep connection with China. General Stilwell first visited China in 1911 as a First Lieutenant in the US Army and was subsequently the US Army’s first Chinese language student. He became fluent in Mandarin and developed an immediate friendship with, and dedication to, the Chinese people that lasted for the rest of his life. Stilwell is best remembered as the Commander of the China-Burma-India Theater during WWII, serving with distinction and unflinching dedication. Over the course of all of his assignments in China he came to respect and admire the Chinese people, their culture, history and character. His interests ranged from interactions with the common people during his trips throughout China to the higher society of Beijing. In a speech in 1942 the General describes his high opinion of the Chinese soldier and people: To me the Chinese soldier best exemplifies the greatness of the Chinese people, -- their indomitable spirit, their uncomplaining loyalty, their honesty of purpose, their steadfast perseverance. The military career of General Stilwell is well known and is chronicled in the Pulitzer Prize winning book Stilwell and the American Experience in China, 1911-1945 by Barbara Tuchman, in which she outlines the General’s many accomplishments during his time in Asia including the building of the road named in his honor, “The Stilwell Road,” to transport Allied supplies along 1,072 miles from Ledo, India to blockaded China. Tuchman writes that Stilwell’s “knowledge of the language and country, friendship for the people, belief and persistence in his task, combined with official position and power, [Stilwell] personified the strongest endeavor…of his country’s experience in Asia.” (p. xi)In 1910, Stilwell married Winifred Alison Smith (1889-1972), and they together had five children: Joseph Jr., Nancy, Winifred (Doot), Alison and Benjamin. Their third daughter, Alison, was the first child born in the new Rockefeller Hospital in Beijing in 1921, the same year that John D. Rockefeller Jr. personally opened it. During the General’s years of service in China the Stilwell family immersed themselves in the rich culture of China at the highest level. The family resided in a traditional Chinese home comprised of pavilions and passageways, with latticed windows looking out onto lilac, plum and other flowering trees. The children learned traditional pursuits including music, history and literature. Alison enjoyed the unique experience of studying Chinese painting with Prince Pu Ru (1896-1963), a cousin of the last emperor Pu Yi (1906-1967), as well as with the prominent painter Yu Fei’an (1888-1959), known for his jewel-like Song-style paintings in ink and color. Alison recounted her experiences with these teachers in her 1967 publication Chinese Painting Techniques. The works of art included in this sale are a family collection, reflective of the many interests of General and Mrs. Stilwell and their children during this period of their life lived in China. A Yongzheng doucai dish from the General Stilwell Family Collection is also being offered in the present sale, lot 815. A selection of paintings from this collection will be offered in Christie’s Fine Chinese Paintings sale on 20 March 2018, lots 90-98. Foot note to first paragraph quote: Tuchman, Barbara, Stilwell and The American Experience in China 1911-1945, New York, 1970, pg. xi and 49.PROPERTY FROM THE FAMILY COLLECTION OF GENERAL JOSEPH W. STILWELL
A VERY RARE IMPERIAL LACQUERED AND MOLDED GOURD BOWL
KANGXI SHANGWAN FOUR-CHARACTER MOLDED MARK WITHIN A CIRCLE AND OF THE PERIOD (1662-1722)
Details
A VERY RARE IMPERIAL LACQUERED AND MOLDED GOURD BOWL
KANGXI SHANGWAN FOUR-CHARACTER MOLDED MARK WITHIN A CIRCLE AND OF THE PERIOD (1662-1722)
The rounded sides of the bowl are finely molded on the exterior with a band of lotus scroll, each lotus blossom supporting a peach. The black lacquer interior is decorated with six gilt roundels of grapes and vines on black lacquer ground. A faint four-character Kangxi shangwan (for the appreciation and pleasure of Kangxi) mark within a circle is molded on the base.
6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm.) diam.
KANGXI SHANGWAN FOUR-CHARACTER MOLDED MARK WITHIN A CIRCLE AND OF THE PERIOD (1662-1722)
The rounded sides of the bowl are finely molded on the exterior with a band of lotus scroll, each lotus blossom supporting a peach. The black lacquer interior is decorated with six gilt roundels of grapes and vines on black lacquer ground. A faint four-character Kangxi shangwan (for the appreciation and pleasure of Kangxi) mark within a circle is molded on the base.
6 1/8 in. (15.5 cm.) diam.
Provenance
The Collection of General Joseph W. Stilwell (1883-1946), acquired in the early twentieth century, and thence by descent within the family.