A rhinoceros horn 'scholar and pine' libation cup


17th/18th centuryDeftly carved around the exterior with a continuous landscape scene of a scholar and young attendant by a rocky bank beside a river with finely incised currents atop which drifts a boat with two oarsmen emerging from under a cliff formed as the handle, beside which another tall and gnarled pine tree carved in high relief rises and branches into the interior, beside further wutong trees and a pavilion, the horn of amber-honey tone. 15.1cm (5 8/9in) long.
|十七/十八世紀 犀角雕松舟人物杯Provenance: An English private collection來源：英國私人收藏The exterior of the present lot carved with figures among ancient pines and streams winding around jagged rocks is painterly and imbued with a poetic elegance fully embodying the romantic temperament of the literati, invoking the idyllic nature retreat one would aspire to retire to. Indeed, the imagery of scholars leisurely walking in a mountainous landscape amidst pine and wutong forests parted by flowing streams was inspired by literati paintings. These, though seemingly depicting tranquil naturalistic scenery, were in fact at times a metaphor and a result of a reaction to a social and political present.Images of the private retreat proliferated among the scholar-officials from the early Song dynasty, when visions of the natural hierarchy became metaphors for the well-regulated state. The scholars extolled the virtues of self-cultivation often in response to political setbacks and asserted their identity as literati through poetry, calligraphy, and painting. The images of old trees, bamboo, rocks, and retirement retreats created by these scholar-artists became emblems of their character and spirit. Pine trees, for example, remaining green even during the winter, came to represent the sturdy and morally upright scholar. Under the (Mongol) Yuan dynasty, when many educated Chinese were barred from government service, the model of the Song literati retreat evolved into an alternative culture as this disenfranchised elite transformed their estates into sites for literary gatherings and other cultural pursuits. These gatherings were frequently commemorated in paintings that, rather than presenting a realistic depiction of an actual place, conveyed the shared cultural ideals of a reclusive world through a symbolic shorthand in which an abode might be represented by a humble thatched hut. Similarly, during the transition between the Ming and Qing dynasties and afterwards under the rule of the Manchu, visions reflecting the idealised images of reclusion regained their political potency and symbolism, when many Ming loyalists lived in self-enforced retirement.The ingenious design of the carver is exhibited by the stream flowing beneath the cliff formed as a handle creating a sense of meandering depth. Compare with a related rhinoceros horn cup with pine trees and stream, 17th century, illustrated by T.Fok, Connoisseurship of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, Hong Kong, 1999, p.188, no.135; a rhinoceros horn with related motif, 17th century, is also illustrated in Ibid., p.201, no.145. It is also interesting to note the unusual form depicting the flow of water, different from the more typical 'scale'-like diaper ground. For similar depiction of streams see Ibid., nos.160 and 168.杯敞口，圈足，雕山石一具、松一株，由杯口盤亙至杯底成鋬。外壁雕山石碼頭，上立一文士及童子，其下淺刻水波紋，水波之上淺浮雕艄公二人擊水行舟。水紋另一側岸上雕茅亭、山石樹木，畫面舒朗，有元人筆意。此件犀角杯取材亞洲犀，質地細密，滿佈黑色魚子紋，色如蜜糖，沉靜溫潤，刀法快意流暢，細節不失嚴謹，佈局張弛有度，畫面動靜有致，乃明季以來山水杯佳作。元代漢人文士上升渠道狹窄，很多人不得不委身匠籍，參與工藝創作，自此書畫等精英文化逐漸融合到市井用作，如瓷器、漆器的紋樣種類更加豐富，文人畫意濃厚。至明代中晚期，文人則直接和匠人合作，作品更見文氣。此風清代更熾，竹刻大家、犀雕名手皆以文人書畫為本。參考一件十七世紀犀角雕松崖溪流杯，題材、佈局和本品頗似，見霍滿棠著，《中國犀角雕刻珍賞》，香港，1999年，頁188，編號135；另一件十七世紀犀角雕山水人物杯，山崖、水波、茅廬及扁舟可資比較，見前書，頁201，編號145。