A ROOTWOOD BRUSHPOT INSCRIBED BY JIN NONG (1687-1763) QING DYNASTY, 18TH CENTURY, DATED 1745

of irregular cylindrical form, the exterior with a gnarled surface detailed with burled nodes, the thick flat-rim incised with a four-character inscription in seal script reading Hanmo shengxiang ('[Poems and proses written with] pen and ink emit fragrance'), across a regular-script inscription reading Qianlong yichou Jiliu Shanmin, in accordance with 1945, followed by a seal mark reading Jin ji jin yin ('Gold auspiciousness and gold seal'), the wood patinated to a dark reddish-brown colour

Born in Hangzhou, Jin Nong (1687-1763) moved to Yangzhou where he found extensive patronage and established himself as a talented poet, calligrapher and painter and a connoisseur of ancient bronzes and stone inscriptions.  He was also identified as one of the ‘Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou’, a group of idiosyncratic artists that excelled at flower paintings in the spontaneous xieyi (picture idea) style.

Jin used many sobriquets, one of which appears here: Jijin, including Dongxin ('Mr. Winter Heart'), Chichun weng ('Old Fellow Brazen Spring'), and Jijin Longxu jiuke ('Old Sojourner Dragon Spindle')