AN ARCHAIC BRONZE RITUAL FOOD VESSEL (POU) SHANG DYNASTY, 13TH CENTURY BC

of compressed globular form, cast in low relief with two bands of decoration, the shoulder set with nine birds with hooked beaks, and raised bosses for eyes set on a leiwen ground, the lower band with an overall series of interlocking T's comprised of leiwen, the waisted neck with a pair of raised filets below the flat everted rim, all supported on a high splayed foot with a narrow band of scrolls and three apertures, the patina a soft gray-green tone with some light cuprite and malachite encrustation

Property of a Gentleman.
Sotheby & Co., London, 16th May 1967, lot 33.

The vessel is slightly warped and about one third of the body and neck have appeared to be broken into several pieces which were reattached and restored at a later date.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Pou appeared in the Shang bronze casting repertoire at the end of the Erligang phase and disappeared before the beginning of the Western Zhou. The round-shouldered present vessel is more typical of the type of pou that appeared in the Anyang period. Robert Bagley notes that the interlocked T-hook pattern found around the body of this particular pou is one of the purely geometric designs in the Shang decorative repertoire, its use restricted to the decoration of bronze vessels of pou and hu form. See Robert W. Bagley, Shang Ritual Bronzes from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, Washington, D.C., 1987, p. 323. Compare also a pou of the same size and design, formerly in the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, illustrated ibid., pp. 320-323, cat. no. 53.