A CARVED BAMBOO 'FISHERMAN AND WOODCUTTER' BRUSHPOT,BITONGMid Qing Dynasty, signed Hou SongyinOf cylindrical form raised on three short feet, the exterior well carved in low relief with a continuous scene rendering a scholar seated in a garden playing theqin apanied by an attendant, a fisherman seated in the front of a canopied sampan across the calm waters, the surrounding landscape with pine trees, boulder-lined riverbanks and drifting clouds carved in varying degrees of relief, incised with a poem followed by a signature and seal of the artist, the bamboo of a honey-brown tone.15.5cm (6 1/8in) high.For further information on this lot please visit theProvenance: 清中期 竹雕「漁樵問答圖」筆筒Hou Songyin, a native of Jiading, Jiangsu Province, was active during the Qianlong and Jiaqing reigns; see Ip Yee and ,Chinese Bamboo Carving, vol.II, Hong Kong, 1982, p.76, where it is noted that he was 'skilled in carving figures on brushpots'.Confucian society broadly categorised people into four occupations: scholars (shi), farmers (nong), artisans (gong), and merchants (shang). Another rubric was created to include two more 'noble' occupations, however. The 'Four Noble Occupations' according to Confucian ideals were: scholars, farmers, fishermen, and woodcutters. These occupations were seen as providing the most benefit for the state and society at large. The 'Four Noble Occupations' had associations of leaving behind the strife of the city and ambitious court officials in the Palace, and returning to enjoy nature in the mountains or countryside while still sustaining society.See a related bamboo brushpot depicting the 'happiness of fishing folk', Qianlong, illustrated by S.Kwan,Ming and Qing Bamboo, Hong Kong, 2000, pp.320-321, no.87; where the author notes that 'the mid-Qing dynasty was a time of peace, and the happiness of fishing folk was a popular motif even on large inlaid hanging screens in the Qing Court Collection'此筆筒以一段竹節為材，圓筒形身下承三淺足。外壁作減地淺浮雕刻畫人物景色，畫面中漁翁持桿憩於船頭，一足垂入水中，姿態悠然自得，學士於岸邊松下撫琴而坐，兩人相對而談，興致盎然，童子手抱柺杖，相隨學士凝神傾聽。河岸之上山石嶙峋，旁生古松枝幹蜿蜒盤曲，松葉如傘。淺浮雕的雲氣和河岸能夠刻畫得層次分明，足見刀功細巧。器色呈琥珀色，潤澤亮麗，空白處刻有詩句。「文華堪擬三秋桂，琴聲儼如茶斛珠。癸亥仲冬，松音製。」侯松音，江蘇嘉定人，活躍於清乾隆、嘉慶年間。擅長刻人物筆筒，堪稱能手。