晚明 銅雙鳳活環耳蓮花薰爐

the deep cup-shaped body finely cast with gently tapering sides supported on a high, slightly splayed foot, sloping inwards at the rim and surmounted by a domed overlapping cover set with a cylindrical knop, the knop cast in the form of a lotus pod, with seven loose gilt-bronze seeds emerging from it, above a cylindrical handle cast with a band of upright lotus petals, the domed cover intricately reticulated with a design of five cranes flying amidst stylised clouds, the exterior of the main body cast with twelve stylised lotus petals enclosing petal-tips, all enclosed within a simulated rope, flanked at the shoulder by a pair of phoenix handles, both gilt, each issuing a loose ring from the beak-like mouth with formalized hair above and surrounding the ears, the lip and footrim both beaded, the outer footrim made up of pendent formalised lotus lappets, cast in relief with an apocryphal six-character Xuande mark in a vertical column down the central lotus petal on one side, the patina of a warm reddish-brown colour

General surface wear and oxidisation. Please note the patina is darker than in the 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."

For a similar incense burner in the Empress’ Chinese Museum at Fontainebleau, with similar decoration of phoenix cover and simulated chain around the body, signed by the supervisor and dated to 1430, see Le Musée chinois de l’impératrice Eugénie, Paris, 1994, pl. 33. Other examples are known from the late Ming dynasty, yet no credible Xuande versions are known. With its extraordinary quality of casting and extensive use of detailed gilding, this is arguably the finest known example.