Lot #109 - An archaic bronze wine vessel, Gu, Late Shang dynasty (c. 1600 BCE to c. 1045 BCE)
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Auction House:Bonhams Australia
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Sale Name:Asian Art
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Sale Date:07 Dec 2022 ~ Session 1 (Lots 1 - 143) 2pm (AEDT)
07 Dec 2022 ~ Session 2 (Lots 201 - 294) 6pm (AEDT) -
Lot #:109
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Lot Description:An archaic bronze wine vessel, Gu, Late Shang dynasty (c. 1600 BCE to c. 1045 BCE)
cast to the interior of the foot two pictogram-characters, ????(shu zi), 28.0cm high -
Provenance:Sotheby's, London. 12 December 1989, lot 107; Melbourne private collection
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Notes:Bronze gu was extremely popular during the Shang dynasty and discontinued around mid Western Zhou dynasty. Shapes such as that of the current lot, with a narrow waist and normally more than 20cm high, are from the late Shang dynasty. Similar vessels to the present lot can be found in various important public collections and international auctions. See similar examples in the Metropolitan Museum, acc.no.24.72.10, and British Museum, acc.no.1966,0223.3, and more similarly in size and decoration, Sotheby's, New York, 20 Sep 2022, lot 3. Note that all these examples, including the current lot, are decorated with the blade motif at the neck, which is an Anyang innovation. According to Shang customs, the two characters represent either the name of the owner, or the name of an ancestor to whom the vessel is dedicated.
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Estimate:A$25,000 - 32,000
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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.
