Important Chinese Art
Important Chinese Art
A RARE PAIR OF PARCEL-GILT BRONZE FIGURES OF DANCING FOREIGNERS, MING DYNASTY, DATED JIAJING BINGYIN YEAR, CORRESPONDING TO 1566
Auction Closed
September 23, 08:35 PM GMT
Estimate
60,000 - 80,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
A RARE PAIR OF PARCEL-GILT BRONZE FIGURES OF DANCING FOREIGNERS
MING DYNASTY, DATED JIAJING BINGYIN YEAR, CORRESPONDING TO 1566
明嘉靖丙寅年（1566年） 銅局部鎏金胡人舞者立像一對 《嘉靖丙寅年記》款
cast in mirror image of one another, each dancing atop a square low table with cabriole legs, one foot planted atop the table, the other leg raised and bent at the knee, the foot pushing against an upright branch, the loose robe sweeping freely around the cropped trousers and tied with a sash at the hips, falling open at the torso revealing the round paunch, the long sleeves extending beyond the hands and accentuating the movement of the arms, the face with a large nose, round eyes and coiled hair at the forehead, beard, and mustache, a small cap positioned at the crown of the head, the back cast with a six-character inscription Jiajing bingyin nian ji (recorded in the bingyin year of the Jiajing reign) (2)
Height 15¾ in., 40 cm
These figures are cast in the form of two Central Asian men, their foreign identities indicated through their boldly rendered facial features and the tightly coiled hair framing their faces. They are presented as entertainers in mid-dance with their arms and legs moving rhythmically and jovial expressions upon their faces. A number of Ming dynasty bronze sculptures of this subject matter survive, however, the present pair appears to be the only remaining example bearing a dated inscription.
Related bronze figures of foreigners include a 17th century example from the collection of Willard D. Straight, sold first at Christie's New York, 20th September 2013, lot 1526, and later at Bonhams New York, 9th September 2019, lot 845; a Ming dynasty figure, also standing with one foot propped on a branch, sold twice in our London rooms, first on 29th June 1976, lot 33, and then on 19th December 1980, lot 182; a pair of dancing men clad similarly to the present set but each with a Buddhist lion underfoot, sold in these rooms, 19th November 1982, lot 103; and a turbaned dancing figure attributed to the 13th-15th century in the collection of the Musée Cernuschi, included in the exhibition, Bronzes de la Chine impériale des Song aux Qing, Musée Cernuschi, Paris, 2013, cat. no. 101. Contemporaneous Ming dynasty bronze arrow vessels in the form of Central Asian dancing men also exist, including a 16th-17th century vase in the collection of the Saint Louis Art Museum published in Philip K. Hu, Later Chinese Bronzes: The Saint Louis Art Museum and the Robert E. Kresko Collections, Saint Louis, 2008, pl. 13.