A RARE CHINESE GILT-BRONZE 'MYTHICAL BEASTS' INCENSE TOOL VASE

A RARE CHINESE GILT-BRONZE 'MYTHICAL BEASTS' INCENSE TOOL VASE
HU WENMING MARK, 17TH CENTURY

Of yuhuchun form, with an elegant neck gently curving to a flared lip, the exterior of the body decorated with mythical beasts, including a dragon, a Buddhist lion, a qilin and a pi xiu reserved against a diaper ground, the body supported on a flattened circular footrim, the recessed foot with a four-character mark reading Hu Wenming zhi, with a paper label for the Finer Collection 'CB 70', 382g, 11.5cm.

Cf. The Harn Museum of Art, Florida, accession no. 2009.48.55, for another small incense tool vase with a Hu Wenming mark depicting a similar subject. See also Sotheby's, 17th April 2025, Monochrome, lot 389 for a incense tool vase with a Hu Wenming mark of a similar size and shape depicting lotus flowers.

十七世紀 銅局部鎏金瑞獸紋小瓶
《胡文明製》

From the Finer Collection of later bronzes and hand warmers.