Pointe de lance, Vietnam, culture de Đông Sơn, entre - 300 et 50. Bronze. L. 42.4 x l. 8 cm. M.C. 7998© 2017 - Musée Cernuschi

Situle thố (Crachoir), Vietnam, culture de Đông Sơn, Entre - 300 et 50. Bronze. H. 16.7 x D. 21 cm. M.C. 8010© 2017 - Musée Cernuschi

Tambour miniature, Vietnam, culture de Đông Sơn, Entre - 300 et 50. Bronze. H. 14.1 x D. 14.9 cm. M.C. 8953© 2017 - Musée Cernuschi

Les tambours de bronze, trống, sont caractéristiques des cultures des régions montagneuses du nord du Vietnam, du Laos, de la Thaïlande, de la frontière orientale de la Birmanie et du sud de la Chine où ils continuent àêtre utilisés aujourd’hui pour rythmer les chants et les danses des populations montagnardes lors des fêtes et des funérailles.

Ils apparurent dès l’aube du premier millénaire avant J.-C. et sont les objets les plus emblématiques de la culture de Đông Sơn. Les exemples les plus anciens ne comportent pas de décor figuré, mais rappellent la transposition dans le bronze de prototypes en bois et vannerie. Sur la paroi de certains grands tambours plus tardifs sont représentées des scènes qui sont les seuls indices nous permettant d’imaginer le contexte dans lequel ces instruments étaient utilisés. On y voit des guerriers coiffés de plumes se tenant sur de longues pirogues, des estrades où des musiciens frappent des tambours à l’aide de maillets, des danseurs armés de haches et coiffés de plumes, des maisons et des greniers sur pilotis. Différentes espèces d’oiseaux aquatiques, des frises de cervidés, des sortes de dragons et de petits félins peuvent aussi y être figurés.

Le centre du plateau est toujours occupé par une étoile en relief plus fort et bombé, venant peut-être renforcer le point de frappe. Ce symbole solaire ou stellaire pourrait évoquer à la fois le rayonnement des vibrations sonores et les forces célestes que le chant du tambour permettait de réguler. 

Autour de l’étoile à huit branches, un motif d’oiseau de profil et volant dans le sens anti-horaire est répété quatre fois. Dans ces oiseaux au long bec et à la longue queue on a pu reconnaître une espèce de héron ou de pélican. Quoiqu’il en soit, cet oiseau en vol, par sa présence constante sur les plateaux de tambour, semble avoir été un animal très important pour cette civilisation. Peut-être renvoyait-il à l’animal totem du clan dominant ?

Des filets doubles ou triples, des hachures et des frises de cercles pointés reliés par des tangentes complètent le décor concentrique de ce plateau de tambour dont la caisse de résonance a étéécrasée pendant l’enfouissement. 

Plus que de simples instruments de musique, les tambours de Đông Sơn semblent avoir été des emblèmes du pouvoir, destinés àêtre joués lors de cérémonies prestigieuses. Certains ont été transmis de générations en générations, mais pouvaient aussi être disposés auprès des défunts de haut rang, et contenaient parfois les ossements ou des offrandes. Les siècles passants, il est difficile de savoir si les rituels de fertilité encore pratiqués aujourd’hui au son des tambours de bronze conservent la même signification que ceux pratiqués à la fin du premier millénaire avant J.-C.

Référence(s) : LOVEDAY Helen, Viêt Nam : Collection vietnamienne du musée Cernuschi, Editions Findakly - Paris-Musées, 2006, p. 39-43.
BAPTISTE Pierre, L’envol du dragon – Art royal du Vietnam, Coédition musée national des arts asiatiques ― Guimet et Éditions Snoeck, 2014, p. 18.
BEZACIER, Louis, Le Viêt-Nam de la préhistoire à la fin de l’occupation chinoise, Manuel d’archéologie d’Extrême-Orient. 1ère partie : Asie du Sud-Est, tome 2, fasc. 1, Editions A. et J. Picard, Paris, 1972, p. 180-225.
(Collectif d’auteurs), Cổ Vật Việt Nam, Vietnamese Antiquities, National Museum of Vietnamese History, Hanoi, 2003, p. 62. GOLOUBEW, Victor, Sur l'origine et la diffusion des tambours métalliques, - [s.l.], 1932

Carved Ivory Relief, Roman, 2nd-3rd century AD, 9.5 x 15.5cm, from the Giorgio Sangiorgi (1885-1965) Collection. Asking price: €110,000. © Charles Ede 

LONDON.- Charles Ede will unveil this rare Roman carved ivory relief dating to the 2nd-3rd century AD as the centrepiece of their TEFAF Maastricht display from March 10-18. 

“I don’t recall such an ivory piece of this quality and size being on the market for a long while,” says the firm’s managing director Martin Clist. 

Depicting a drunken Papa Silenos supported by two naked satyrs accompanied by a torch-lit procession before the temple with the palm tree in the background, the scene is complete with figures in a frenzied dance, while a woman sleeps to the left of the view. 

“Describing the 9.5 x 15.5cm piece as “a scene of extraordinary intensity”, Clist believes it could have come from a piece of furniture or a casket. 

“The preservation of ancient ivory is uncommon, as an organic material it can easily decay. The material was then, as now, seen as a material of luxury and therefore would have been attached to something of high value.” 

It is a sizeable section of ivory too, and although consolidated in the early 1920s is very well preserved. “The workmanship is of remarkably high quality. The subtlety of the carving is wonderful,” Clist adds. 

It also comes from a great collection, that of Giorgio Sangiorgi (1885-1965), where it arrived as a gift from his friend Giacomo Boni in 1927, a donation recorded in Sangiorgi’s private diary. 

Many pieces from the collection (much of it glass) can now been found in museum collections. 

The relief will appear on stand 426 at TEFAF Maastricht, where Charles Ede will be asking €110,000 for it.

Other artworks exhibit at TEFAF: 

A statue of Venus pudica, circa 2nd century AD. Marble. Height 62 cm (24.4 in.).© Charles Ede 

Provenance: Private collection, Paris; Acquired in the 1950s from the French art market.

Statuette of a male votary, Circa 6th century BC. Limestone. Height 56 cm (22 in.). © Charles Ede 

The stoic figure stands with his fists clenched and held by his side, the left leg striding forward, head held high and gazing straight ahead, the mouth with an 'archaic' smile. He wears a tight fitting garment and two armlets, a foliate wreath keeps in place his long locks of hair which cascade over his shoulders.

Provenance: Sotheby's, London, 20 May 1968, lot 149; Ann Brunskill, UK; Acquired from the above.

Near Eastern Amlash zebu bull rhyton, Circa 1000 BC. Terracotta, 25.9 x 31 cm (10.2 x 12.2 in.). © Charles Ede 

Lauren Adriana, XO Cuffs. Peridot, tourmalines, spinels, garnets, silver and gold© Lauren Adriana, photographed by Richard Valencia.

NEW YORK, NY.- Phillips announces Lauren Adriana, Jewels Now, a landmark exhibition of Lauren Adriana’s work, taking place in New York and London. Lauren Adriana is a leading voice in a new generation of fine jewellers, creating unique, bold, abstract jewels in a dazzling array of gemstones. Her commitment to abstraction over naturalism sets her jewels apart from others and creates the graphic and sculptural quality that is becoming Lauren Adriana’s signature. Phillips’ exhibition will open to the public in New York from 8-14 March at 450 Park Avenue, before travelling to London, where it will be on view from 20-25 March at 30 Berkeley Square. 

This immersive, selling exhibition of 50 jewels is the culmination of two years’ planning and spans five years of work. It comprises new jewels created specifically for the show, but also past work, with jewels privately loaned from around the world. Lauren Adriana, Jewels Now is the first major contemporary jewellery exhibition held at Phillips in recent years, and will mark the first time these extraordinary pieces have been displayed in public. 

Lauren Adriana, GABO Earrings. Zircons, diamonds and gold© Lauren Adriana, photographed by Richard Valencia.

On the exhibition Sarah O’Brien, International Director, Jewellery, said: “Lauren Adriana, Jewels Now presents a new way of looking at jewels, setting a fresh dialogue for what jewellery should be in the decades to come. In addition to its role as an auction house, Phillips has a reputation for staging exhibitions within its galleries that are educational, accessible, and on the pulse of what is happening now. We are proud to collaborate with such a remarkable visionary in a rare exhibition of her stunning works of art, as we continue our mission of championing the best in jewellery design, both past and present.” 

On her work Lauren Adriana said: “I want to move jewellery away from its over-reliance on naturalism and historical motifs, towards a greater degree of abstraction. As an artist, I look to create new forms - to show in a jewel something that has not been seen before. Originality comes from embracing the future, not recreating the past." 

Lauren Adriana, SHIELD Ring. Diamonds and gold© Lauren Adriana, photographed by Richard Valencia

Phillips has led the way in contemporary art, focusing exclusively on the creative output from the 20th and 21st centuries. Phillips is now strategically placed to expand its place in the jewellery market, recently appointing Susan Abeles as the Head of Jewellery for the Americas and Senior International Specialist and beginning plans for a New York jewellery auction in the fall season. With a dynamic ability to adapt to an ever-evolving market, Phillips builds its auctions and exhibitions to reflect the most current collecting trends. This unique collaboration with Lauren Adriana will show jewellery as an artistic endeavor and design collectible in its own right, continuing Phillips’ mission to represent the very best of contemporary art and design. 

Based in London, Lauren Adriana (age 32) creates a limited output of around 40 unique jewels each year. Lauren Adriana graduated from renowned art college, Central Saint Martins with a BA in Jewellery Design, before founding the business with her husband Nicholas Briggs. By creating unique and collectable jewels using the finest craftsmanship and remarkable gemstones, combined with a fiercely original vision, Lauren Adriana has, in less than five years, made a permanent mark on the jewellery world. Her singular aesthetic and remarkable designs are instantly recognisable, and have earned Lauren Adriana a prodigious reputation and a loyal clientele.

New York Exhibition 8-14 March. Monday-Saturday 10am-6pm - Sunday 12pm-6pm - 450 Park Avenue, New York (map)

London Exhibition 20-25 March. Tuesday-Saturday 10am-6pm - Sunday 12pm-6pm - 30 Berkeley Square, London (map)

Lauren Adriana, TORUS Earrings. Tanzanites, spinels, chalcedony, silver and gold © Lauren Adriana, photographed by Richard Valencia

Lauren Adriana, TUBE Ring. Emeralds, diamonds and gold© Lauren Adriana, photographed by Richard Valencia

Lauren Adriana, CHANDELIER Earrings. Ethiopian opals, fire opals, silver and gold© Lauren Adriana, photographed by Richard Valencia

Lauren Adriana, RIBBON Ring. Sapphires, silver, diamonds and gold© Lauren Adriana, photographed by Richard Valencia

Effigy Mask of Coyolxauhqui (“She Who Has Facial Painting with Bells”), ca. A.D. 1500. Mexica culture, Mexico, Tenochtitlan. Greenstone. H. 4 1/8 × W. 5 11/16 × D. 1 9/16 in. (10.5 × 14.5 × 4 cm). Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, Anonymous Gift, 1928 (28-40-20/C10108)© Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University

This greenstone effigy mask represents the severed head of Coyolxauhqui. According to myth, her brother Huitzilopochtli, the Sun God and patron deity of the Mexica, was born fully armed and slayed his four hundred siblings. This battle signified the cosmological struggle between the moon and the sun, and it also had political overtones, as Coyolxauhqui represented the vanquished enemy and served as a warning to those who challenged the Aztecs.

Mask, A.D. 1469–1481, Mexica culture, Mexico, Tenochtitlan (Mexico City). Greenstone, obsidian inlays. H. 7 3/4 × W. 9 5/8 × D. 3 7/16 in., Approximately 240oz. (19.7 × 24.4 × 8.8 cm, 6804.65g), Museo del Templo Mayor, Secretaría de Cultura-INAH, Mexico City (10-168801).

The greenstone mask featuring obsidian pupils appears to have been made in Tenochtitlan by Mexica artists emulating the ancient style of masks from Teotihuacan, a long-abandoned site near the Mexica capital. Such works signal the Mexica reverence for greenstone and for antiquities from illustrious civilizations of the past. 

Mask, ca. 800 B.C. (fabrication); A.D. 1469–1481 (deposition), Olmec style, Mexico, Guerrero; Mexico, Tenochtitlan (Mexico City). Hornblende hornfels. H. 4 1/4 × W. 3 3/8 × D. 1 1/4 in. (10.8 × 8.6 × 3.2 cm), Museo del Templo Mayor, Secretaría de Cultura-INAH, Mexico City (10-168803).

This Olmec-style mask was either passed down as an ancestral heirloom or excavated during Mexica times. Such works signal the Mexica reverence for greenstone and for antiquities from illustrious civilizations of the past. 

Seated Four Armed Mahakala, Dali Kingdom, Yunnan, Circa 1150. Gilt and Lacquered Bronze, 25 cm (9.8 in). © Walter Arader Himalayan Art (New York, NY)

Dagger, Tibet or Bhutan, 18-19th century. Steel, silver, gold, turquoise, wood and leather. 43.5 cm / 17.1 in. © Walter Arader Himalayan Art (New York, NY)

Hiroshige (1797 - 1858), The Izu Mountains. Series: 36 Views of Fuji. Color Woodblock Print, published 1858. © The Art of Japan (Seattle, WA)

Cloche à cornes sommitales de bouc, Vietnam, régions montagneuses du nord, culture de Dông Son, Période Giao Chi (Ier siècle avant J.-C.-Ier siècle après J.-C.). Bronze. H. : 25 cm, larg. : 14,5 cm. INV. 2505-43 © Musées Barbier-Mueller

Cloche, Vietnam, région nord, culture de Dông Son, IIIe siècle avant J.-C. Bronze. H. : 33 cm. INV. 2505-78 © Musées Barbier-Mueller.

D’aspect trapu, ce « gong » est lourd, orné et élaboré. Doté au sommet d’une poignée fondue d’une pièce avec l’objet, celle-ci adopte la forme de deux cornes de buffle pointant vers l’extérieur, au milieu desquelles se tient, debout, un zébu. 

Dans la partie supérieure, un riche décor occupe presque toute la surface. Au centre, deux grandes spirales dos à dos sont entourées d’un quadruple filet disposé en arche, lui-même bordé de « dents de scie » en un rang assez serré, avec un filet de pointillés entre les lignes de l’arche. Ces dents de scie sont à nouveau cernées de filets. 

Au-dessous, le milieu du gong est occupé par un registre contenant quatre quadrupèdes avec une grande queue en panache, divisés en deux groupes de deux animaux se faisant face.

La base, séparée du haut par un filet, est lisse, sans décoration. Le verso est décoré de la même manière.

Un objet assez similaire (sans zébu sur la poignée) a été trouvéà Môt Son (province de Thanh Hòa). Bezacier [1] en reproduit la photographie : les deux doubles spirales adossées ne semblent pas être entourées de dents de scie (la pièce est endommagée vers le bas, alors que celle-ci est intacte). Une troisième a été trouvée à Viêt Khê (Haï Phong). L’éditeur se réfère à Bezacier [2] pour indiquer que son décor serait beaucoup plus simple : à la place des deux grandes doubles spirales adossées, il y aurait quatre cercles concentriques reliés par des tangentes ressemblant au motif fréquent sur certains tambours de bronze.

Édité par Jean Paul Barbier-Mueller

[1] 1972, pl. VII, 2

The Lioness, Central Asia. Inscription dated the sixth month of guimao corresponding to 1483. Ink and pigment on paper, 242 x 287 cm (95.3 x 113 in.). With an imperial inscription by the Chenghua Emperor on silk, one imperial seal Guangyun zhibao. Rossi & Rossi © TEFAF

A pre-1483 Central Asian Sino-Islamic painting presented as tribute by the Sultan of Samarkand to the then Emperor of Ming China.

Provenance: Private collection, London; C. Boisgirard et al, Paris, April 1977; Essayan collection, Paris; By descent to the previous owner's sister; Gulbenkian collection, France, 1920s; Séquestre Worch, André Portier, 26-29th March 1922, lot 420

Literature: William Watson, Islamic Art I, Chinese Style in the Paintings of the Istanbul Albums, London 1981, p. 76 

Rossi & Rossi (Stand 162) at at TEFAF Maastricht, March 10-18, 2018

Lot 526. A small Longquan celadon 'phoenix-tail' vase, Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279); 6 7/8 in. (17.4 cm.) high. Estimate USD 15,000 - USD 25,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

The vase is well potted with a high-shouldered body rising to a cylindrical neck flaring at the mouth rim which is bound with metal. It is covered overall with an attractive bluish-green glaze, with the exception of the foot ring which exposes the dark grey body, cloth box.

Provenance: The Sir Herbert and Lady Ingram Collection, no. 395, before 1958.

Literature: Christie's, The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics: An Exhibition of Song Treasures from the Linyushanren Collection, Hong Kong, 2012, p. 171, no. 71

Exhibited: Christie's, The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics: An Exhibition of Song Treasures from the Linyushanren Collection, Hong Kong, 22 to 27 November 2012; New York, 15 to 20 March 2013; London, 10 to 14 May 2013.

Christie's. The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics - The Linyushanren Collection, Part III, 22 March 2018, New York

Lot 528. A very rare Longquan celadon kinuta vase, Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279); 11 ¼ in. (28.6 cm.) high. Estimate USD 10,000 - USD 15,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

vase is robustly potted with a mallet-shaped body with angular, sloping shoulders, rising to a tall neck flanked by a pair of handles in the form of dragon-headed fish, below the widely flared, dish-shaped mouth. The vase is covered overall with an even glaze of soft sea-green color, leaving the greyish foot ring unglazed, Japanese double wood box.

Provenance: Mayuyama, Tokyo

Literature: Christie's, The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics: An Exhibition of Song Treasures from the Linyushanren Collection, Hong Kong, 2012, pp. 176-177, no. 75. 
Rosemary Scott, ‘Chinese Classic Wares from a Japanese Collection: Song Ceramics from the Linyushanren Collection’, Arts of Asia, March-April 2014, pp. 97-108, fig. 20. 

Exhibited: Christie's, The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics: An Exhibition of Song Treasures from the Linyushanren Collection, Hong Kong, 22 to 27 November 2012; New York, 15 to 20 March 2013; London, 10 to 14 May 2013.

Note: The shape of the current censer originates from archaic bronze lian vessels from the Han dynasty (206 BC - AD 220). Ceramic vessels of this form are often molded with bow-strings around the body, such as the well-known Northern Song Ru censer in the Percival David Collection, illustrated in Sekai Toji Zenshu, vol. 12, Tokyo, 1977, p. 70, no. 62. An almost identical Longquan tripod censer, in the collection of the Hangzhou Archaeological Bureau, is illustrated by Zhu Boqian (ed.), Celadons from Longquan Kilns, Taipei, 1998, p. 149, no. 116. A small Longquan censer of similar form was discovered in 1991 in Suining, Sichuan province, amongst a cache of ceramics dating from the late Southern Song period, and is illustrated in Newly Discovered Southern Song Ceramics, A Thirteenth-Century “Time Capsule”, Tokyo, 1998, p. 32, no. 23.

Longquan vases with the type of handles seen on the current vessel are rare. The handles are in the shape of yulong (dragon-fish) with fish-like bodies and dragon-like heads. Dragon-fish are mentioned in Chinese literature as early as the Bronze Age, and appear in legends related in the Shanhaijing (Classic of Mountains and Seas). They were included in painted and incised decoration on ceramics of the Tang dynasty, from kilns such as Changsha and Yue, but do not seem to occur in three-dimensional ceramic form until the Song and Liao dynasties. By the Song dynasty, handles such as these depicted a carp in the process of turning into a dragon. This evokes a legend, which dates from at least as early as the Eastern Han dynasty (AD 8 - 220), that tells of the carp swimming up river to the Dragon Gate. If it is successful in leaping over the gate it turns into a dragon. This legend soon came to represent the success of the Chinese scholars, who studied hard to pass the civil service examinations, and if they achieved the highest grade would attain an official post.  

As mentioned above, vases with dragon-fish handles are quite rare, and the current vase is even more rare for being unusually large, as well as having an unusually fine glaze. The majority of Longquan mallet vases are significantly smaller. A Longquan mallet vase with dragon-fish handles, excavated in 1983 from a Southern Song tomb in Songyangxian, which is only 16 cm. high, is illustrated by Zhu Boqian (ed.), Celadons from Longquan Kilns, Taipei, 1998, p. 149, no. 116; while the fine example from the Barlow Collection, now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, is only 16.8 cm. high, see Rose Kerr, Song Dynasty Ceramics, London, 2004, p. 94, no. 95. Further smaller vases of this type include two in the Carl Kempe Collection illustrated by Bo Gyllensvärd, Chinese Ceramics in the Carl Kempe Collection, Stockholm/Güteborg/Uppsala, 1962, p. 51, no. 98 (20 cm. high) and no. 99 (26 cm. high); a third vase in the Njoo Collection (also 26 cm. high) is illustrated in the exhibition catalogue Chinese Celadons and Other Related Wares in Southeast Asia, Singapore, 1979, pl. 73, left; and a fourth example (25.7 cm. high) was recovered from the wreck of a vessel which sank off the Sinan coast of Korea in about 1323 on its way to Japan, and is illustrated in Xin'an haidi wenwu (Cultural Relics from the Sinan Seabed), Seoul, 1977, no. 3.

Mallet vase with fish-shaped handles, porcelain with green glaze, Lonquan area, China, Southern Song dynasty, about 1250-1279. Height: 16.7 cm, Diameter: 7.3 cm. Given by Sir Alan Barlow, Bart.,GCB, KBE, and Lady Barlow, C.103-1967  © Victoria and Albert Museum, London 2017 

Christie's. The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics - The Linyushanren Collection, Part III, 22 March 2018, New York

Lot 529. A Longquan celadon washer, Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279); 5 1/8 in. (13 cm.) diam. Estimate USD 8,000 - USD 12,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

The washer has slightly rounded sides that flare from the low, tapering foot to the lipped rim, and is covered overall with an even glaze of attractive sea-green tone, except for the foot ring which is burnt slightly orange in the firing, Japanese wood box.

Christie's. The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics - The Linyushanren Collection, Part III, 22 March 2018, New York

Lot 530. A very rare and important Guan-type Longquan celadon hu-shaped vase, Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279); 8 7/8 in. (22.5 cm.) high. Estimate USD 40,000 - USD 60,000. © Christie's Images Ltd 2018

The pear-shaped body of oval section is divided into four horizontal registers which have raised vertical ridges on four sides simulating the flanges of archaic bronze vessels, and is flanked by two lug handles. The vase is covered overall with a lustrous glaze of bluish-green tone, suffused with extensive ice crackles and a wider network of gold crackles, Japanese triple wood box.

Provenance: The Ataka Collection.

Literature: Nihon Keizai Shinbunsha, Bi no bi ten (The Beauty of Beauty Exhibition), no. 6, Tokyo, 1967.
Christie's, The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics: An Exhibition of Song Treasures from the Linyushanren Collection, Hong Kong, 2012, pp. 182-183, no. 79.

Exhibited: Nihon Keizai Shinbunsha, Bi no bi ten (The Beauty of Beauty Exhibition), no. 6, Tokyo Nihonbashi Mitsukoshi Department Store, 29 August to 3 September 1967.
Christie's, The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics: An Exhibition of Song Treasures from the Linyushanren Collection, Hong Kong, 22 to 27 November 2012; New York, 15 to 20 March 2013; London, 10 to 14 May 2013.

Note: The form and decoration of this Longquan hu vase were inspired by ritual bronzes from the late Shang dynasty, circa 13th-11th century BC. On bronze hu vessels, flanges often appear in the center of decorative registers, bisecting the taotie masks, and the lug handles are decorated with animal masks. (Fig. 1) However, the surface of the present Longquan vase is left undecorated except for the horizontal grooves suggesting the divisions between registers and the vertical flanges. The Longquan potters’ subtle approach to archaism captured the most important visual icons of archaic bronzes, while still retaining the quintessential quality of Song ceramics. This would appeal to both the minimalist aesthetic and antiquarianism of the Song ruling elites. 

Fig. 1. Late Shang dynasty, Bronze Ritual Wine Jar, Hu, sold at Christie’s New York, The Sze Yuan Tang Archaic Bronzes, 16 September 2010, lot 831.

Beginning in the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127) and continuing through the Southern Song (1127–1279), collecting bronzes became a quintessential part of the literati life. This antiquarianism reached a pinnacle during the reign of Emperor Huizong (1082-1135), who not only collected bronzes but also had replicas of ancient bronzes made to facilitate various state ceremonies. When the court fled south under the Jurchen invasion in 1127, these bronze ritual implements had been abandoned and replacement ritual vessels were made in more economic mediums such as ceramic. The revered Southern Song Guan ware (official ware) was first set up in Xiuneisi (Palace Maintenance Office) soon after the court was settled in Hangzhou. And the Xiuneisi was supervised by the Liqiju (Bureau of Ritual Vessels), which was responsible for making replacement ritual vessels, see Dynastic Renaissance: Art and Culture of the Southern Song Antiquities, Taipei, 2010, pp. 13-14. A majestic Guanware vase made in imitation of an archaic bronze hu, in the National Palace Museum, is illustrated ibid, pp. 50-51, no. I-2. These replacement ritual vessels were made in accordance with major antiquarian compilations of the Northern Song dynasty such as the Xuanhe bogu tu (Illustrated Catalogue of Antique Objects in the Emperor Huizong's Collection), rather than actual archaic bronzes. (Fig. 2)

Fig. 2 Line drawing of a Shang bronze hu in Xuanhe bogu tu (Illustrated Catalogue of Antique Objects in the Xuanhe Collection), 1123, vol. 12, p. 20.

Christie's. The Classic Age of Chinese Ceramics - The Linyushanren Collection, Part III, 22 March 2018, New York

Turtle-Shell Ornaments, Aztec or Mixtec (Ñudzavui), A.D. 1200–1521, Mexico. Gold. Each Bead: 1 3/4 × 1 × 1/2 in. (4.5 × 2.5 × 1.3 cm). Necklace length: 15 1/2 in. (39.4 cm). Pre-Columbian Collection, Dumbarton Oaks, Washington, D.C. (PC.B.103).

This necklace is composed of rows of cast-gold turtle shells, filigree volutes, and clapperless gold bells, or tinklers. When worn, the bells would have created a dynamic moving, shining, and sonorous fringe that is characteristic of Aztec and Mixtec designs in gold. 

Necklace with Beads in the Shape of Jaguars' Teeth, Mixtec (Ñudzavui), A.D. 1200–1521, Central Mexico. Gold. W. (bead) 1 3/8 × L. (necklace) 15 1/4 in. (3.5 × 38.7 cm). Purchase, Mariana and Ray Herrmann, Jill and Alan Rappaport, and Stephanie Bernheim Gifts, 2017, 2017.675 © 2000–2018 The Metropolitan Museum of Art. 

Bracelet aux grenouilles, culture de Dông Son, Vietnam, région nord, Ier siècle avant J.-C. ?. Bronze. H. : 4,3 cm, diam. : 11 cm. INV. 2505-44, Musées Barbier-Mueller.

Bracelet pour bras droit, décoré de motifs en forme de V minuscules (produits par le tressage de fins boudins de cire), disposés en bandes séparées par des sillons, que l’on trouve couramment dans la culture de Dông Son.

Le bord extérieur est orné en fort relief de petites grenouilles, des rainettes, se suivant dans le sens des aiguilles d’une montre. C’est un objet rare dont on n’a trouvé que quelques pièces au Vietnam. Il est composé de deux pièces semblables, deux moitiés percées de trous dans lesquels on insérait des tenons pour la fixation au bras.

La grenouille (ou le crapaud) apparaît en ronde bosse sur les tambours de bronze de la dernière période de la culture de Dông Son. C’est aussi une date possible pour ce bracelet.

Édité par Laurence Mattet

Van Viêt Nguyên, Le profane et le divin, arts de l’Antiquité. Fleurons du musée Barbier-Mueller, musée Barbier-Mueller & Hazan (éd.), 2008 : p. 452.