A LARGE FINELY CARVED RHINOCEROS HORN LIBATION VESSEL

Details

A LARGE FINELY CARVED RHINOCEROS HORN LIBATION VESSEL
18TH/EARLY 19TH CENTURY

Carved in high relief around the sides with rustic figures at various pursuits in a mountainous river landscape, including two woodcutters walking on a path by a waterfall and three figures in boats, with various trees issuing from the rocky cliffs and a large gnarled pine at one end which forms the handle, a small spider incised on the inside of the lip, the material of deep reddish-brown colour
6 5/8 in. (16.7 cm.) across

Lot Essay

Previously sold in our New York Rooms, 20 March 1997, lot 234.

For two related examples depicting figures in boats see Jan Chapman, 'The Chester Beatty Collection of Chinese Carved Rhinoceros Horn Cups', Arts of Asia, May-June, 1982, pp. 82-83, pls 18-19; the large goblet with double-pine handle, comparable to the present example, is illustrated again by J. Chapman, The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, 1999, fig. 77.

(US$13,000-19,000)

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