AN INSCRIBED BAMBOO ‘FIGURES IN A LANDSCAPE’ BRUSHPOT SIGNED QINGXI, QING DYNASTY, 19TH CENTURY, DATED 1802 OR 1862

finely carved with a continuous landscape scene with various groups of figures and a scholar with his acolytes, inscribed shancun guike tu ('picture of returning guests to a mountain village') and dated to the renxu year, signed by the artist

The brushpot is in overall good condition with typical light surface wear and minute nicks to the edges, including the mouthrim and foot. There are also expected age cracks, consistent with its age and type, mainly extending upwards from the base.
"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 brushpot is especially noteworthy for its delicate carving, combining elements in both low and high relief. The pictorial rendering of the rockwork with short and shallow strokes create an attractive contrast to the figures in the pavilion, which have been carved almost in the round, and the pine tree with its detailed pine needles carved in relief. A brushpot of this type, but signed Wang Meilin, in the Shanghai Museum, was included in the Museum’s exhibition Literati Spirit. Art of Chinese Bamboo Carving, Shanghai, 2012, cat. no. 71; another, also signed Wang Meilin, in the collection of Simon Kwan, was exhibited in Ming and Qing Bamboo, Art Gallery, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 2000, cat. no. 123; and a third, unsigned and decorated with fishermen, in the Hong Kong Museum of Art, was included in the Museum’s exhibition Chinese Bamboo Carving, vol. 1, Hong Kong, 1978, col. pl. 23, and cat. no. 80.

Bamboo brushpots bearing the signature Qingxi (Clear Stream), or Qingxi shanren (Mountain Man of Clear Stream) are discussed by Dr Ip Yee in the catalogue to the exhibition ibid., p. 292, and by Wang Shixiang in ‘Pushuo mili Qingxi Songxi kuan zhuke [Complicated and confusing bamboo carvings signed Qingxi and Songxi], Shouzangjia, 1996, vol. 5, pp. 20-6, where it is suggested they were carved in the mid-Qing dynasty, specifically during the Jiaqing period. For a brushpot signed Qingxi, see one in the collection of Dr Ip Yee, included in the exhibition Chinese Bamboo Carving, op. cit., cat. no. 79; and another inscribed with a poem, sold at Christie’s Hong Kong, 28th November 2005, lot 1479.