A BRONZE OPENWORK ‘DRAGON AND PHOENIX’ CEREMONIAL DAGGER AXE (GE), WITH A BIRD-FORM FINIAL, WARRING STATES PERIOD

拍品描述

A BRONZE OPENWORK ‘DRAGON AND PHOENIX’ CEREMONIAL DAGGER AXE (GE), WITH A BIRD-FORM FINIAL, WARRING STATES PERIOD China, 475-221 BC. Crisply cast, the elongated blade (yuan), with beveled edges, extending from a curved lower edge to a pointed tip and issuing from a slotted shaft, its surface finely decorated in openwork with stylized dragons and phoenixes, their minutely rendered scaly and feathered bodies intricately interlocking. The globular finial in the form of a stylized bird is set with two projections of differing lengths, each terminating in a curved tip. Dimensions: Length 15.7 cm (dagger axe) With a fitted “Alan Hartman” velvet stand, dating from the 1980s or earlier. (3) The ge emerged in late Neolithic China and remained a principal polearm throughout the Shang and Zhou dynasties, continuing in use into the Han. It comprised a transverse blade projecting at right angles from a wooden shaft, secured by a rectangular tang and descending flange. Early blades were fashioned from stone, followed by bronze, while jade and elaborately openworked bronze versions, including the present lot, were created as ceremonial weapons and potent emblems of martial authority. The dagger-axe ranks among the earliest purpose-designed weapons of ancient China. Its transverse blade was employed in sweeping, hooking, and downward cutting blows. Unlike the later ji, it possessed no spear point aligned with the shaft, although the projecting blade itself terminated in a sharp tip. With its intricate openwork and densely cast zoomorphic decoration, however, the present lot was intended not for combat but for ritual display, transforming one of China’s most emblematic Bronze Age weapons into a commanding insignia of rank and military power. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Sotheby’s Hong Kong, 26 August 2021, lot 1072 Price: HKD 201,600 or approx. EUR 24,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related form, openwork decoration, and manner of casting. Note the size (19.5 cm).

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