An exceptionally rare and very large rhinoceros horn 'three-dragons and grapevine' wine receptacle


17th/18th centuryBoldly carved as a very large cup-shaped vine leaf emanating from thick twisting branches issuing further vines, tendrils and clusters of luscious juicy grapes skillfully carved in high relief, interspersed with three powerfully writhing dragons, each with incised manes, flaring nostrils and bulging eyes, the horn of dark-chocolate tone. 19cm (7 1/2in) long.
|十七/十八世紀 犀角雕三龍葡萄杯Provenance:An important European private collection of rhinoceros horn carvings, and thence by descent來源：重要歐洲私人收藏犀角雕刻，並由後人保存迄今Published and Illustrated: J.Chapman, The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, London, 1999, pp.62 and 91, figs.32 and 72出版及著錄：J.Chapman著，《The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China》，倫敦，1999年，頁62及91，圖32及72The present rhinoceros horn wine receptacle is exceptionally rare and is one of the largest of its type; in the words of Jan Chapman it is '...the largest bowl I have yet seen. It is almost certainly a wine container - the clue lying in the luscious grapes which decorate the exterior.'; see J.Chapman, The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, London, 1999, p.91. This remarkable vessel is noteworthy for the bold high-relief carving of the juicy grapes, large vine leaves and three ferocious dragons.Grapes, introduced to China from Central Asia, became popular as a decorative motif in Chinese works of art during the Tang dynasty, as can be seen in bronze mirrors, due to trade and cultural outreach at the time. It re-appeared again in the Yuan dynasty, most likely for similar reasons and continued into the early Ming period, as can be attested by the decoration on blue and white porcelain. By the late Ming period, grapes had proliferated enough for even the poor scholar Xu Wei 徐渭 (1521-1593) to write and paint them on China's south-east coast. In his poem inscribed on a painting of grapes, Xu wrote: 'Pearls from my pen find no buyer' 筆低明珠無處賣, making it clear that grapes likened to treasured pearls, could be used as a metaphor for talent (appreciated or not). The second half of the 17th century saw greater proliferation of this motif, though shown with squirrels and not dragons, as can be seen in porcelain vessels.The imagery between dragons and pearl-like grapes and the wine they produced was established earlier however, by the Tang poet Li He 李賀 (790-816) in his well known poem, 'Bring in the Wine!' (將進酒):琉璃鐘，琥珀濃，小槽酒滴真珠紅。烹龍炮鳳玉脂泣，羅幃繡幕圍香風。'Glazed goblet filled with thick amber liquid, little drops of wine truly like red pearls.Dragons brewing and phoenix boiling tears of lard-like jade, the fragrance encircling the embroidered silk gauze curtain'.The poem likens the act of heating red-grape wine as to dragons and phoenixes brewing a fragrant elixir. This imagery may have inspired the master carver of the present rhinoceros horn cup as well as those drinking from it.Rhinoceros horn cups decorated with dragons and grapes are very rare; see, however, a related rhinoceros horn cup carved with grapes, illustrated by T.Fok, Connoisseurship of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, Hong Kong, 1999, p.158, no.107.杯身浮雕三龍盤亙杯沿，身攀杯壁，足底鏤空，雕折枝葡萄紋。此杯體量巨大，所費不貲，刀法凌峻，打磨圓潤，身染玄黑，其色如墨。此杯身形之鉅，《The Art of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China（中國犀角雕刻藝術）》作者Jan Chapman曾嘆之：「此杯為我經眼最大者，為酒器無疑，蓋因其身滿雕之碩大葡萄。」見其書，倫敦，1999年，頁91。葡萄傳自中亞，碩果累累，枝藤連綿之態寓意子孫興旺。唐代開始，工藝品常飾此紋樣，如銅鏡上流行之海獸葡萄紋。元代以來葡萄紋更加流行，青花大碟及漆器等工藝品多飾以纏枝或折枝葡萄紋。明代葡萄則有了更多寓意，如徐渭曾在他的葡萄畫作上題：「 筆低明珠無處賣」，此處以葡萄比明珠，有懷才不遇之嘆。龍紋在酒杯上的裝飾自古多見，詩人亦多吟詠，如李賀《將進酒》有「琉璃鐘，琥珀濃，小槽酒滴真珠紅。烹龍炮鳳玉脂泣，羅幃繡幕圍香風」之句。 而同時裝飾有龍紋和葡萄紋的犀角杯則十分罕見，惟有一件十七世紀的犀角雕葡萄多子杯且作參考，見霍滿棠著，《中國犀角雕刻珍賞》，香港，1999年，頁158，編號107。