A MAGNIFICENT AND RARE LARGE CARVED BAMBOO 'EIGHT IMMORTALS' BRUSHPOT ATTRIBUTED TO GU JUE, QING DYNASTY, KANGXI PERIOD

exquisitely carved in varying levels of relief on the columnar exterior with a continuous scene depicting the eight Daoist Immortals crossing the sea on a raft after attending the Conference of the Magical Peach, each holding their respective attributes to exercise their powers, including Cao Guojiu with his clappers, Lan Caihe with his basket, Lü Dongbin with a sword on his back and Han Xiangzi playing his flute, their gestures and animated expressions meticulously picked out, the setting detailed with large overhanging pine trees and jagged cliffs and rocky promontories, the dynamic scene accentuated with foaming waves crashing against the raft, all captured in masterly strokes beneath a warm golden-brown patina, the base and mouthrim mounted in rosewood

Sotheby's Hong Kong, 27th April 1999, lot 312.

The brushpot is preserved in overall good condition. As visible in the detailed catalogue photos, there are characteristic age cracks, mostly emanating from the rim. There is a section of the rim between two age cracks, measuring 2.5cm by 0.2cm that has been stabilised, visible on the upper right side of the main catalogue photo.
"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. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This outstanding brushpot is clearly the work of the famous bamboo carver, Gu Jue. Although unsigned, the distinct style of the exceptional workmanship, in which the figures are carved with the uttermost naturalistic sensitivity and the natural contours of the mountainous landscape are skifully cut out in varying levels of relief, is indistinguishable from other acknowledged signed works by Gu Jue in museum and private collections.

Gu Jue was a native of Jiading, Jiangsu province, and one of the most celebrated carvers of the Kangxi period. He is known for his finely detailed scenes of figures in landscapes, often combining high-relief with shallow carving. Such was the fastidiousness of his discipline that he was known to take up to a year to complete one piece, and the present brushpot is an excellent example of the painstaking care he gave to individual works. Each texture, from the crashing waves and hard cold surfaces of the jagged rocks to the various types of trees and their corresponding leaves, have been masterfully captured. Such details also reveal his acute observation and understanding of nature beyond woodblock prints and paintings from which bamboo decorative motifs often derived, and his ability to translate these into his craft.

The brushpot illustrates the Eight Daoist Immortals as they cross the rough sea after attending the Peach Festival of the Queen Mother of the West. Rather than travelling by clouds, they combined their powers to sail safely past the tempest. The proverb is a lesson on how individual strengths and gifts can be used to tackle the same obstacle.

Gu's surviving works are rare: see one from the Eugene Fuller Memorial collection in the Seattle Art Museum, illustrated in Ip Yee and Laurence C. S. Tam, Chinese Bamboo Carving, Part I, Hong Kong, 1978, colour pl. 50 (fig. 1); a smaller bamboo brushpot carved with a landscape and signed Gu Zhongyu, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Bamboo, Wood, Ivory and Rhinoceros Horn Carving, Hong Kong, 2002, pl. 39 (fig. 2); and another from the Mary and George Bloch collection (fig. 3), sold in these rooms, 23rd October 2005, lot 5. All three comparable examples encapsulate the defined style of the carver, with identical treatment of the figures, pine trees and rockwork. Through superb mastery of varying levels of relief carving, Gu Jue conjours up scenes of extraordinarily vivid detail, in which the gentle swirling curves of the clouds contrast with the sharply defined contours of the landscape, and where the sensitive details of the figures' faces are framed within the energetic movement of the scenes.

For other examples of Gu Jue's work, compare the famous bamboo brushpot by Gu Jue from the Guoyunlou collection, sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 30th May 2005, lot 1293. See also another example illustrated in 'Chinese Decorative Arts', Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, New York, 1997, p. 50.