Lot 13
A very rare Imperial gilt-bronze and turquoise-inlaid 'luduan' incense burner and cover 18th century
Withdrawn
Amended
28 November 2017, 14:00 HKT
Hong Kong, Six Pacific PlaceHK$400,000 - HK$500,000
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A very rare Imperial gilt-bronze and turquoise-inlaid 'luduan' incense burner and cover
18th century
Heavily cast in the form of a bulbous beast sturdily standing foursquare, its head forming the hinged cover depicted with a ferocious and alert facial expression with protruding eyes, curled bushy eyebrows, a broad nose with flaring nostrils, and an open mouth revealing its tongue and sharp fangs, surmounted by a single horn flanked by two pointed ears, its scaly body prominently rendered in bold relief and elaborately adorned with turquoise-inlaid flames, the chest decorated with a collar suspending a double gourd and ornamental tassels, the long bifurcated tail curling around the back terminating on both sides of the hind legs. 24cm (9 1/2in) high
Heavily cast in the form of a bulbous beast sturdily standing foursquare, its head forming the hinged cover depicted with a ferocious and alert facial expression with protruding eyes, curled bushy eyebrows, a broad nose with flaring nostrils, and an open mouth revealing its tongue and sharp fangs, surmounted by a single horn flanked by two pointed ears, its scaly body prominently rendered in bold relief and elaborately adorned with turquoise-inlaid flames, the chest decorated with a collar suspending a double gourd and ornamental tassels, the long bifurcated tail curling around the back terminating on both sides of the hind legs. 24cm (9 1/2in) high
Footnotes
十八世紀 銅鎏金嵌綠松石甪端式香爐
Provenance:
An American private collection
Dragon House, San Francisco, circa 1980s, by repute
來源：
美國私人舊藏
傳由舊金山古董商Dragon House售出，約1980年代
The present lot is particularly rare for its gilt-bronze and turquoise-inlay design, and would have most likely graced one of the Imperial throne halls. Compare, however, a very similar pair of gilt-bronze luduan incense burners with nearly identical lotus-shaped turquoise-inlays, Qianlong, in the Shenyang Imperial Palace Museum, illustrated by R.L.Thorp, Son of Heaven: Imperial Arts of China, Seattle, 1989, p.40, nos.33-34 (one of a pair).
Luduan are legendary beasts believed to be capable of detecting the truth, travelling great distances in short amounts of time and fluent in all languages. Often mistaken for qilin, which have hooved feet, luduan tend to have rounder bodies and clawed paws. Due to their mythical abilities, incense burners in the form of these beasts were favoured by the Court and were important in the Imperial context, symbolising the emperor's wisdom as a virtuous ruler with the mandate from Heaven to rule. They formed an important part of the Imperial Hall paraphernalia, placed on either side of the Imperial throne, with the smoke emanating from the open jaws. Such incense burners were first made during the Ming dynasty in bronze and jade, with more lavish and colourful luduan incense burners, produced at the zenith of the Qing dynasty, exemplifying the power, prosperity and superb craftsmanship achieved in the Qianlong reign. For Ming dynasty examples in jade, see Compendium of Collections in the Palace Museum: Jade 7 Ming Dynasty, Beijing, 2011, nos.49-50; for a gilt-bronze example, Ming dynasty, see H.Moss and G.Tsang, Arts from the Scholar's Studio, Hong Kong, 1986, p.241, pl.232; and for Qing dynasty examples in cloisonné enamel, gilt-bronze, and champlevé enamel with inlays of various materials, flanking the throne in Imperial halls, see Classics of the Forbidden City: Imperial Furniture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Beijing, 2007, nos.359, 361 and 362.
The Imperial throne halls were designed to inspire awe and demonstrate the power and capabilities of the emperor to rule. No restraint was shown in the furnishings and works of art surrounding the emperor and his Court. This extravagance is exemplified in the present lot remarkably embellished with turquoise-inlays forming lotus blossoms scattered around the richly gilt body of the elaborately cast mythical beast. See a related pair of larger gilt-bronze and champlevé enamel 'luduan' incense burners, inlaid with turquoise and semi-precious stones, Qianlong, in the Musée National du Château de Fontainebleau, illustrated by M.Crick, Chine Impériale: Splendeurs de la Dynastie Qing 1644-1911, Geneva, 2014, pp.44-45.
See a related gilt-bronze and semi-precious-stone embellished incense burner and cover, Qianlong, in the National Palace Museum, Taipei, illustrated in Special Exhibition of Incense Burners and Perfumers Throughout the Dynasties, Taipei, 1994, no.119; and another example, which was sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 10 April 2006, lot 1542; see also a related gilt-splashed mythical-beast censer, 17th/18th century, which was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 1 June 2011, lot 3948.
此式以綠松石鑲嵌之銅鎏金甪端香爐在傳世品中極其少見，目前僅見瀋陽故宮博物院藏一對，原本用於放置在瀋陽故宮皇帝臨朝聽政之金鑾殿寶座兩旁，著錄於R.L.Thorp，《Son of Heaven: Imperial Arts of China》，西雅圖，1989年，頁40，編號33-34（一對之一）。
甪端乃中國古代傳說中的神獸，與麒麟相似，頭上有一角，宋《符瑞志》曰：「甪端日行萬八千里，又曉四夷之語，聖主在位，明達方外幽遠，則奉書而至。」因此瀋陽故宮金鑾殿以及北京故宮太和殿兩邊均有甪端護衛在側，肅穆威嚴，以顯示皇帝為有道明君，身在寶座而曉天下事，做到八方歸順，四海來朝，聖明地治理天下。甪端式香爐在明代宮廷玉器及青銅器上已有出現，玉器之例，見《故宮博物院藏品大系：玉器編7明代》，北京，2011年，編號49-50；明代銅鎏金之例，見H.Moss及G.Tsang《Arts from the Scholar's Studio》，香港，1986年，頁241，圖232；清代鏨胎填琺瑯嵌百寶甪端，見《故宮經典：故宮明式家具圖典》，北京，2007年，編號359，361及362。
清宮中亦使用此類甪端放香爐置於皇帝寶座前，以使得殿堂中氣氛更加肅穆威嚴，此類甪端通常裝飾華麗，身體嵌綠松石或百寶，見法國國家博物館楓丹白露宮藏一對鏨胎嵌百寶甪端式香爐，著錄於M.Crick，《Chine Impériale: Splendeurs de la Dynastie Qing 1644-1911》，日內瓦，2014年，頁44-45。
台北故宮博物院藏一件清乾隆銅鎏金嵌百寶甪端，見《故宮歷代香具圖錄》，台北，1994年，編號119；另見香港蘇富比曾售出一例，2006年4月10日，拍品編號1542；香港佳士得曾售出一例十七/十八世紀銅胎灑金甪端式香爐，2011年6月1日，拍品編號3948。
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