A CHINESE BRONZE ARCHAIC TRIPOD RITUAL FOOD VESSEL AND COVER, DING

A CHINESE BRONZE ARCHAIC TRIPOD RITUAL FOOD VESSEL AND COVER, DING
HAN DYNASTY

The circular body raised on three cabriole legs and flanked by a pair of upright loop side-handles, decorated with kui-dragon friezes above a band of lappets and centred with a rope twist, the domed cover with three small rope-twist ring handles and further kui-dragon friezes with a yin-yang type symbol to the centre, the surface a deep olive brown with large areas of malachite encrustation, 1kg, 14.8cm. (2)

Provenance: from the collection of Dame Marie Tempest (1864 -1942), and thence by descent. Dame Marie Tempest (née Marie Susan Etherington) was an English actress sometimes referred to as ‘the Queen of her profession’. Tempest’s career spanned over five decades, making her stage debut in 1885 in the operetta Boccaccio at the Comedy Theatre. The title role in Dorothy (1887), running for 931 performances, established her career and reputation. In 1914 she undertook an eight-year worldwide tour, visiting America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Singapore, Japan, the Philippines and China, where she may have acquired this piece. In 1935 she celebrated her golden jubilee with a performance attended by George V and Queen Mary, and two years later, she was made a Dame of the Order of the British Empire (DBE).

The ding is one of the most important shapes in Chinese ritual bronzes. Known as early as the Erlitou period (c.1900-1500 BC) in ceramic form, by the Shang dynasty (c.1600-1100 BC) it was in use in bronze for sacrificial offerings during religious ceremonies. Increasingly its function became that of status symbol, and by the Western Zhou period (c.1100-771 BC) the number of ding that could be owned was regulated according to rank, with only the king being entitled to a full set of nine. The shape of the ding also changed over this period and the composition of the present lot, with its angular loop side-handles and small rope-twist ring handles on the cover, was already popular during the Eastern Zhou period (770-256 BC). It can be seen, for instance, in the example dated to the middle Spring and Autumn period (6th century BC) , illustrated in J So in Eastern Zhou Ritual Bronzes from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, pp.126-8, no.12. It then endured throughout the Han dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), as seen in related examples in The Complete Collection of Treasures at the Palace Museum, Bronze Articles for Daily Use, vol.28, pp.45-51, nos.39-43.

漢 青銅仿古夔龍紋雙耳三足蓋鼎
來源：英國Marie Tempest 女爵士 (1864 -1942) 的收藏，之後由其後人繼承。Tempest 女爵士 (別名Marie Susan Etherington) 是一位英國著名女演員及女高音，她的職業生涯跨越了半世紀。