1st Mar, 2024 10:00
The No Reserve Dragon Sale
317
A SMALL BRONZE TORTOISE SEAL, MING DYNASTY OR EARLIER
明代或更早龜鈕銅印
Sold for €1,040
including Buyer's Premium
Please note this Lot is to be sold at No Reserve. 本拍品不設底價
Expert’s note: Tortoise seals are known from as early as the Qin dynasty and increased in popularity during the Han dynasty where they were cast in gilt bronze and gold, see a Han version illustrated in Masterpieces of Chinese Seals in the National Palace Museum, Tokyo, 1976, pl. 43.
China, 1368-1644 or earlier. Of rectangular form, surmounted by a naturalistically cast tortoise standing foursquare, the head slightly raised, the carapace finely incised. The base cast with a two-character inscription.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age. Extensive wear, fine copper-red patina and verdigris, encrustations, minor nicks and losses.
Provenance: From an old private collection in Budapest, Hungary, acquired in the local trade before 2000.
Weight: 38.9 g
Dimensions: Length 2.8 cm
Please click here to read the full description
The slow movement of the tortoise symbolizes steadfastness and immutability, thus images of tortoises were popular surmounting pillars and personal seals, often depicted supporting stone tablets or books containing the edicts of emperors (see Terese Tse Bartholomew, Hidden Meanings in Chinese Art, San Francisco, 2006, p. 226).
The seal face inscription: For the first character we may be looking at a word that has the root character for ‘tongue’. It's hard to get a feeling for the exact word since the characters are so stylized, but the word for tongue is the basis for other words like ‘poetry’, ‘decree’, ‘sovereign’, etc. The second character, depending on context, can be translated anywhere from ‘fragrant’, ‘reputation’, or ‘words carrying weight’. The seal face thus could translate anywhere from ‘fragrant words’ in a scholarly context to ‘official decree’ in a more political context.
Literature comparison:
Compare a silver tortoise seal, 2.1 cm long, dated 1600-1625, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 1982.203.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie’s Hong Kong, 12 April 2018, lot 31
Price: HKD 150,000 or approx. EUR 19,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A silvered-bronze ‘tortoise’ seal, Ming dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form of the seal and modeling of the tortoise. Note the silvering and larger size (5.5 cm).
点此阅读中文翻译 (Chinese Translation)
明代或更早龜鈕銅印
中國，1368-1644年或更早。長方形印，上有龜鈕，頭部微微抬起，龜甲上刻有紋理，小龜栩栩如生。二字印文。
專家注釋：龜鈕印早在秦朝就已為人所知，在漢代則越來越受推崇，大多用鎏金銅和金鑄造，參見《see a Han version illustrated in Masterpieces of Chinese Seals in the National Palace Museum》中的漢代例子，東京，1976年，圖 43。
品相：品相良好，大面積磨損、細小的紅綠色包漿、結殼、輕微刻痕和缺損。
來源：來自匈牙利布達佩斯的一個私人舊藏，2000 年之前在當地購得。
重量：38.9 克
尺寸：長2.8 厘米
文獻比較：
比較一件的1600-1625年龜形銀印，長2.1 厘米，收藏於大都會藝術博物館，館藏編號1982.203。
拍賣結果比較：
形制：相近
拍賣：香港佳士得，2018年4月12日，lot 31
價格：HKD 150,000（相當於今日EUR 19,000）
描述：明鎏銀銅龜鈕方印
專家評論：比較非常相近的外形。請注意鎏銀和尺寸較大 (5.5 厘米)。
Please note this Lot is to be sold at No Reserve. 本拍品不設底價
Expert’s note: Tortoise seals are known from as early as the Qin dynasty and increased in popularity during the Han dynasty where they were cast in gilt bronze and gold, see a Han version illustrated in Masterpieces of Chinese Seals in the National Palace Museum, Tokyo, 1976, pl. 43.
China, 1368-1644 or earlier. Of rectangular form, surmounted by a naturalistically cast tortoise standing foursquare, the head slightly raised, the carapace finely incised. The base cast with a two-character inscription.
Condition: Good condition, commensurate with age. Extensive wear, fine copper-red patina and verdigris, encrustations, minor nicks and losses.
Provenance: From an old private collection in Budapest, Hungary, acquired in the local trade before 2000.
Weight: 38.9 g
Dimensions: Length 2.8 cm
Please click here to read the full description
The slow movement of the tortoise symbolizes steadfastness and immutability, thus images of tortoises were popular surmounting pillars and personal seals, often depicted supporting stone tablets or books containing the edicts of emperors (see Terese Tse Bartholomew, Hidden Meanings in Chinese Art, San Francisco, 2006, p. 226).
The seal face inscription: For the first character we may be looking at a word that has the root character for ‘tongue’. It's hard to get a feeling for the exact word since the characters are so stylized, but the word for tongue is the basis for other words like ‘poetry’, ‘decree’, ‘sovereign’, etc. The second character, depending on context, can be translated anywhere from ‘fragrant’, ‘reputation’, or ‘words carrying weight’. The seal face thus could translate anywhere from ‘fragrant words’ in a scholarly context to ‘official decree’ in a more political context.
Literature comparison:
Compare a silver tortoise seal, 2.1 cm long, dated 1600-1625, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 1982.203.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie’s Hong Kong, 12 April 2018, lot 31
Price: HKD 150,000 or approx. EUR 19,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A silvered-bronze ‘tortoise’ seal, Ming dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form of the seal and modeling of the tortoise. Note the silvering and larger size (5.5 cm).
点此阅读中文翻译 (Chinese Translation)
明代或更早龜鈕銅印
中國，1368-1644年或更早。長方形印，上有龜鈕，頭部微微抬起，龜甲上刻有紋理，小龜栩栩如生。二字印文。
專家注釋：龜鈕印早在秦朝就已為人所知，在漢代則越來越受推崇，大多用鎏金銅和金鑄造，參見《see a Han version illustrated in Masterpieces of Chinese Seals in the National Palace Museum》中的漢代例子，東京，1976年，圖 43。
品相：品相良好，大面積磨損、細小的紅綠色包漿、結殼、輕微刻痕和缺損。
來源：來自匈牙利布達佩斯的一個私人舊藏，2000 年之前在當地購得。
重量：38.9 克
尺寸：長2.8 厘米
文獻比較：
比較一件的1600-1625年龜形銀印，長2.1 厘米，收藏於大都會藝術博物館，館藏編號1982.203。
拍賣結果比較：
形制：相近
拍賣：香港佳士得，2018年4月12日，lot 31
價格：HKD 150,000（相當於今日EUR 19,000）
描述：明鎏銀銅龜鈕方印
專家評論：比較非常相近的外形。請注意鎏銀和尺寸較大 (5.5 厘米)。
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