An exquisite rhinoceros horn 'lotus leaf and crab' libation cup


Signed Shen Yiru, 17th/18th centurySuperbly carved in the form of an open lotus leaf with undulating curled edges and finely detailed veins, issuing from a stem supported on a base in the form of a small lotus bloom borne on another stem, the stems extending around one side forming the openwork handle, tied with a millet leaf beneath a small naturalistic lotus leaf, the exterior crisply carved with tiny conch shells amidst water weeds and on the other side incised with a ten-character inscription ending with a four-character maker's mark, the interior exquisitely carved in high relief with a crab clutching a stalk of millet, the horn of a rich caramel tone darkening at the core, box. 13.8cm (5 1/2in) long (2).
|十七/十八世紀 犀角雕年年和諧杯「自茲連甲第，于以定玄黃」、「沈怡如製」行書刻款Provenance:A Long Island Collection, USChristie's New York, 26 March 2003, lot 5Angela Chua Collection, Hong Kong來源：美國長島收藏紐約佳士得，2003年3月26日，拍品5香港蔡劉木蘭女士收藏The inscription on one side of the cup reads: Zi zi lian jia di, yu yi ding xuan huang, Shen Yiru zhiWhich may be translated as:'To come first in consecutive public examinations, Heaven and Earth shall be at (one's) command, made by Shen Ruyi'. The crab's shell is a symbol of armour, jia 甲, which may be interpreted as 'first' - referring to the prestigious first place in the Imperial Civil Service jinshi Examinations held by the Qing Court; hence the present cup represents an auspicious wish for success at the examination ensuring a successful career as an official and a bright and secure future. The stalk of millet, sui 穗, together with crab and lotus, is a rubus for harmony. See another rhinoceros horn cup incised with the same inscription from the Songzhutang Collection, carved in the form of a lotus leaf with a crab grasping a millet spray around the exterior, illustrated by T.Fok, Connoisseurship of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, Hong Kong, 1999, no.88, which was later sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 31 May 2010, lot 1823. The carving on the present lot is exceptional in its masterful craftsmanship and ingenious design. It would have required scrupulous attention to detail from the master carver, realistically depicting the powerful crab with strong angular legs, and the deftly carved snails as well as the naturalistic furling veined lotus leaves.It is extremely rare to see such a large crab carved on the interior of the rhinoceros horn cup as in the present lot; for related examples of a rhinoceros horn lotus leaf cup carved with a smaller crab at the interior, see one in the Osaka Municipal Museum of Art, illustrated by J.Chapman, The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, London, 1999, p.188, no.256; a second one in the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin; and a third in the Staatliches Museum fur Volkerkunde, Munich, illustrated by J.Chapman, ibid., nos.217 and 219. A further example in the collection of Hong Kong Museum of Art, also carved as a lotus leaf with a crab and snails, is illustrated by T.Fok, ibid., no.90.杯由亞洲犀雕成，以一大隻荷葉為杯身，荷花作杯底，花莖及另一小荷葉莖部用蘆葦相捆，形成杯把，荷葉莖部浮雕螺螄、水草、菱角、荷葉筋脈以雙陰線雕刻，葉邊沿微捲，杯內深處鏤雕一螃蟹，雙目圓瞪，雙螯鉗一蘆葦，八足支撐於荷葉內壁，工藝精湛，寫實逼真。杯外壁一側陰刻「自茲連甲第，于以定玄黃」及「沈怡如製」行書刻款。此杯工藝寫實，刀法圓潤有力，其荷葉葉脈用雙陰線減地而雕之技法，以及荷葉邊沿向內翻捲之雕刻，使得荷葉更為生動逼真，可謂鬼斧仙工。杯內螃蟹細節亦刻畫極為逼真，雙螯鉗蘆葦，象徵「二甲傳臚」，具有金榜題名、官運亨通、前程似錦之美好寓意。此杯結合陰刻、浮雕及鏤雕三種技藝，雕刻極精細，工藝及精巧，效果傳神，足見匠心。參看松竹堂舊藏一件十七世紀晚期連科及第杯，其杯身亦刻有同樣的銘文，見霍滿棠著，《中國犀角雕刻珍賞》，香港，1999年，編號88，後於香港佳士得售出，2010年5月31日，拍品1823。諸如此杯於杯內壁鏤雕螃蟹之同類犀角杯寥寥可數：見大阪市立博物館一件犀角雕荷葉杯，杯內亦雕有一蟹，但尺寸稍小，見J.Chapman，《The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China》，倫敦，1999年，頁188，編號256。另見同著錄中兩例，包括查士特圖書館藏一例，以及都柏林五大洲博物館藏一例，編號217及219。香港藝術館亦藏一例類似主題的犀角杯，見霍滿棠同著錄，編號90。