A CHINESE FAMILLE VERTE ‘FEAST AT HONG GATE’ BALUSTER VASE

A CHINESE FAMILLE VERTE ‘FEAST AT HONG GATE’ BALUSTER VASE
KANGXI 1662-1722

The body is decorated with a banqueting scene depicting the rival generals including Xiang Yu (232–202BC), a general famous for his incredible strength, lifting an ancient bronze vessel with one arm before the assembled party. The flared neck with a single rib is painted with flowering peony and prunus sprays, the reverse with pine and wutong trees in a rocky landscape, 47cm.

Provenance: Field Marshal Earl Kitchener of Khartoum (1850-1916), and thence by descent through the family.

The Feast at Hong Gate, also known as the Banquet at Hongmen, was an episode of the interregnum that took place in 206 BC following the Qin Dynasty where Xiang Yu (232–202BC), a duke of the insurgent Chu forces attempts to assassinate Liu Bang (256–195BC), a rival rebel general. In Chinese culture, the term 'Feast at Hong Gate' hong men yan is used figuratively to refer to a trap or a situation ostensibly joyous but in fact treacherous.

清康熙 五彩項羽舉鼎紋瓶
來源：霍雷肖•赫伯特•基奇納元帥（1850-1916），之後由其後人繼承。