A RARE GILT-BRONZE ANTHROPOMORPHIC ZODIAC FIGURE OF A RABBIT, TANG DYNASTY

拍品描述

A RARE GILT-BRONZE ANTHROPOMORPHIC ZODIAC FIGURE OF A RABBIT, TANG DYNASTY Scientific Analysis Report: The counterpart to the present lot, catalog no. 65, was scientifically examined by CIRAM and found to display no evidence of modern manufacture or artificial patination, with its alloy composition and corrosion phenomena consistent with the dating to the Tang Dynasty. See the corresponding catalog entry for further details. As both pieces evidently originate from the same production, and where originally acquired from the same source, there is every reason to expect that a CIRAM analysis of the present lot would produce identical results. The buyer will therefore have the option of having the present lot tested and confirmed by CIRAM upon request, after full payment has been received. China, 618-906. Finely cast as a human figure with rabbit head standing ramrod straight with hands clasped beside the long sleeves of court robes belted at the waist, falling in crisp folds and fanning out over the tips of the shoes. The head rising from an arched neck and terminating in a pair of pricked ears. Dimensions: Height 19 cm Zodiac figures first appeared during the Han dynasty as artisans began casting representations of the animals in bronze as offerings. From the Northern Wei dynasty (386-534 AD) onwards, the zodiac animals began to be anthropomorphized, such as in the present lot, and often functioned as grave goods. Numerous painted pottery figures of this subject have been excavated in Tang dynasty tombs, however gilt-bronze examples like the present lot are extremely rare. Literature comparison: Compare a closely related bronze figure of a zodiac rabbit, dated Tang dynasty, 19.5 cm tall, in the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, object number B60B18. Auction result comparison: Type: Closely related Auction: Sotheby’s New York, 19 March 2025, lot 110 Price: USD 44,450 or approx. EUR 41,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the closely related modeling, manner of casting, and gilding, with similar pose, movement of the robe, and size (18.2 cm).

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