China, 4^th-3^rd century BC. Finely cast in openwork relief in the form of two birds, one of which forms the hook, both with long sinuous bodies, the bird at the center with outspread feathered wings, scaly legs, and sharp claws. Their bodies lavishly inlaid in gold and silver and studded with seven turquoise roundels.

The reverse set with a button inlaid in gold and silver with a lozenge issuing spirals from its corners.

Provenance: From the private collection of Alan and Simone Hartman, New York. Alan Hartman (1930-2023) was an influential American art dealer, who took over his parents’ antique business in Manhattan and established the legendary Rare Art Gallery on Madison Avenue, with further locations in Dallas and Palm Beach. His wife Simone (née Horowitz) already served as assistant manager of the New York gallery before the couple married in 1975, and together they built a renowned collection for over half a century and became noted art patrons, enriching the collections of important museums including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (which opened the Alan and Simone Hartman Galleries in 2013) as well as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Brooklyn Museum in New York. Alan Hartman has been described as the greatest antiques dealer of our generation, and was widely recognized as a world authority in Chinese jade, bronzes, and Asian works of art.
Condition: Good condition with old wear, small losses, small nicks, few scratches, sings of weathering and erosion, some inlays possibly later replaced, minor old fills, all as expected from Eastern Zhou dynasty excavations. The bronze with a fine, naturally grown patina with areas of malachite and cuprite encrustation.

Weight: 379.4 g
Dimensions: Length 16.5 cm

The decorative technique, using gold and silver foil and turquoise cabochons inlaid into prepared depressions in the bronze surface, is typical of the late Eastern Zhou period. The openwork, plaque-like body, as well as the dynamic depiction suggest that designs like this were indebted to belt plaques worn by seminomadic peoples who lived along China's northern frontiers. This garment hook represents a brilliant integration of northern and Chinese cultural and artistic characteristics during the last centuries BC in China.

Literature comparison:
Compare a closely related bronze, gold, silver, and turquoise garment hook, dated 4^th-3^rd century BC, published by Eskenazi, Chinese Bronzes: A Selection from European Collections, London/Beijing, 1995, no. 42. Compare a closely related bronze belt hook, inlaid in gold, silver, and turquoise, dated 3rd century BC, in the Miho Museum, object number H-15.2.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Bonhams New York, 19 September 2022, lot 274
Price: USD 8,925 or approx. EUR 9,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A large gold and silver inlaid bronze garment hook, Warring States period
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form, subject, openwork, and inlays. Note the size (18.7 cm) and inlays to the back.