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Lot #57 - A gold offering coin

  • Auction House:
    Bonhams Australia
  • Sale Name:
    Asian Art
  • Sale Date:
    07 Dec 2022 ~ Session 1 (Lots 1 - 143) 2pm (AEDT)
    07 Dec 2022 ~ Session 2 (Lots 201 - 294) 6pm (AEDT)
  • Lot #:
    57
  • Lot Description:
    A gold offering coin
    Chunhua period (990 to 994), Northern Song Dynasty
    incised to the top a character si (four), 1.9cm diam., 11.5g
  • Provenance:
    The Hsiao family collection, Melbourne
  • References:
    Compare with three coins of the same commission, each incised with character one, two, and four, see Christie's, New York, 24 to 25 Mar 2022, lot 762. Examples are also found in the Shanxi Museum, see Rare Treasure in Shanxi Museum, Shanxi, 2005, no.230.
  • Notes:
    Chunhua is the fourth reign title Emperor Taizong of Song used, dated from 990 to 994 during the Northern Song dynasty. The four characters, Chunhua yuan bao, are believed to be based on the Emperor's own calligraphy. It has been suggested that the Emperor commissioned coins of this type as an offering when he visited Mount Wutai in Shandong Province for Buddhist ceremonies. Although the identities of the Buddhist deities on the reverse are not documented, the scene may represent "tongzi bai Guanyin": Child of Wealth standing on the lotus base on the left offering prayers to Guanyin seated in dhyanasana on the right.
  • Estimate:
    A$12,000 - 18,000
  • Realised Price:
    *****

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  • Category:
    Oriental

This Sale has been held and this item is no longer available. Details are provided for information purposes only.



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