Olivia Xu
Associate Specialist
THE PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN 紳士藏品
Lot 75
A GROUP OF FOUR ARCHAIC BELT HOOKS Eastern Zhou/Han Dynasty
16 May 2024, 10:00 BST
London, New Bond StreetSold for £5,120 inc. premium
Looking for a similar item?
Our Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art specialists can help you find a similar item at an auction or via a private sale.
Find your local specialistAsk about this lot
Chen Xie
Specialist
Edward Luper
Specialist, Chinese Works of Art
A GROUP OF FOUR ARCHAIC BELT HOOKS
Eastern Zhou/Han Dynasty
Comprising a large iron belt hook, inlaid in gold and silver with geometric patterns, 25.3cm (10in) long; a bronze belt hook inlaid in silver with archaic and abstract patterns, 13.4cm (5 1/4in) long; a bronze belt hook inlaid with turquoise, silver and gold forming a pattern of ovoid lozenges, 19cm (7 1/2in) long; a bronze belt hook decorated with turquoise stones and traces of gilt, 18.8cm (7 3/8in) long; each cast with a beast-head finial and a raised button on the reverse of the arched body. (4).
Comprising a large iron belt hook, inlaid in gold and silver with geometric patterns, 25.3cm (10in) long; a bronze belt hook inlaid in silver with archaic and abstract patterns, 13.4cm (5 1/4in) long; a bronze belt hook inlaid with turquoise, silver and gold forming a pattern of ovoid lozenges, 19cm (7 1/2in) long; a bronze belt hook decorated with turquoise stones and traces of gilt, 18.8cm (7 3/8in) long; each cast with a beast-head finial and a raised button on the reverse of the arched body. (4).
Footnotes
東周/漢 錯金銀鐵帶鉤 錯銀銅帶鉤 鎏金嵌綠松石帶鉤 及錯金銀嵌綠松石銅帶鉤 一組四件
Originally used by the Northern grassland ethnic groups, belt hooks entered the Central Plains during the Spring and Autumn period. They soon became popular among the elites, evolving into a symbol of social status by the Warring States period. Compare the bronze belt hook inlaid in silver with a similar one, Warring States, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Bronzes Unearthed in China: Henan II, vol.10, Beijing, 2009, p.463, pl.505. See four related belt-hooks, Zhou dynasty, illustrated by P.K.M. Kwok, Dialogue with the Ancients: 100 Bronzes of the Shang, Zhou, and Han Dynasties, Hong Kong, 2018, pp.346-352.
See also a related silver-inlaid bronze belt hook, Warring States Period, which was sold at Bonhams London, 9 May 2022, lot 265.
Additional information
Bid now on these items
