Lot 701. A bronze ritual wine vessel, jia, Early Shang dynasty; h. 23.7 cm. Lot Sold 90,000 HKD (Estimate 300,000 - 500,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Note: The history of jia can be traced to the Neolithic period, where a number of such vessels in pottery forms were produced. In the Shang dynasty, as an essential ritual wine vessel, bronze jia was continued to be cast in various forms. The type of jia with a flat base and a band of ornamental patterns on the neck, similar to the present one, was often dated to the early phase of the Shang dynasty. See a few related examples in the museums dated to the early Shang dynasty, one in the Palace Museum, Beijing, accession number 故00076990 (https://www.dpm.org.cn/collection/bronze/230589); one from the Arthur M. Sackler Collection, previously owned by Dr. Paul Singer (1904-1997), now in the National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., accession number S2012.9.571 (https://www.si.edu/object/ritual-wine-warmer-jia-taotie-and-dragons:fsg_S2012.9.571); and the third one excavated in Daxin, Jinan, Shandong in 1970, now in the Jinan Museum, illustrated in Li Boqian ed., The Complete Collection of Bronzes Unearthed in China, Shandong, I, Beijing, 2018, vol. 5, pl. 10.

Compare a jia of similar form, however, with whorls in low relief to the lower body, sold in our Paris rooms, 16th June 2022, lot 86. Archaic bronze jia of such form and decorations have been recovered from important early Shang sites like the Shang capital city in Zhengzhou, Henan and the southerly palace city Panlongcheng in Hubei province, and can be attributed to the Erligang period. For example, a similar jia with only one post excavated in Panlongcheng, Wuhan, Hunan, published in Li Boqian ed., The Complete Collection of Bronzes Unearthed in China, Hubei, I, Beijing, 2018, vol. 11, pl 54. However, a few more jia vessels with only one decorative band, related to the present lot, dated to the early Shang dynasty were also unearthed in areas nearby in Panlongcheng, published in ibid, pls 46 - 49.

Lot 702. A bronze ritual wine vessel, jue, Early Shang dynasty; h. 17.3 cm. Lot Sold 120,000 HKD (Estimate 50,000 - 100,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Lot 704. A bronze 'dragon' ritual food vessel, ding, Late Shang dynasty; w. 21.5 cm, h. 23.3 cm, with 1 X-ray. Lot Sold 66,000 HKD (Estimate 150,000 - 300,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Lot 705. An inscribed bronze 'dragon' ritual wine vessel, lei, Late Shang dynasty; inscription: De (clan emblem), h. 33 cm, with 1 X-ray. Lot Sold 108,000 HKD (Estimate 300,000 - 600,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Lot 706. A small bronze 'mask' ritual food vessel, liding, Late Shang dynasty;  h. 20.5 cm, with 1 X-ray. Lot Sold 90,000 HKD (Estimate 120,000 - 240,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Provenance: Acquired in Illinois, USA, 8 October 2001 (invoice).

Lot 708. A bronze ritual food vessel, ding, Late Shang dynasty;  h. 25 cm, with 1 X-ray. Lot Sold 120,000 HKD (Estimate 520,000 - 300,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Lot 709. A bronze reticulated 'beast mask' ritual wine vessel, gu, Late Shang dynasty;  h. 25 cm. Lot Sold 66,000 HKD (Estimate 150,000 - 300,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Provenance: An Asian private collection, acquired in Hong Kong, early 2000s.
Bonhams Hong Kong, 30 November 2022, lot 103.

Lot 710. An inscribed bronze ritual wine vessel, jue, Late Shang dynasty; four character inscribed on one of the columns reading futian yangran, h. 22.5 cm, with 2 X-rays. Lot Sold 132,000 HKD (Estimate 100,000 - 200,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Lot 711. A bronze 'mask' ritual food vessel, gui, Late Shang-early Western Zhou dynasty; w. 30 cm, h. 15.5 cm, with 2 X-rays. Lot Sold 360,000 HKD (Estimate 100,000 - 200,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Lot 712. A bronze ritual wine vessel, gu, Late Shang dynasty;  h. 28.1 cm, with 1 X-ray. Lot Sold 78,000 HKD (Estimate 180,000 - 360,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Lot 715. An inscribed bronze ritual wine vessel, jue, Late Shang dynasty; inscription tian (clan emblem), h. 2.5 cm, with 1 X-ray. Lot Sold 132,000 HKD (Estimate 100,000 - 200,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Lot 717. An inscribed bronze ritual wine vessel, zhi, Late Shang dynasty; inscription Fun Wu, h. 11.5 cm, with 1 X-ray. Lot Sold 96,000 HKD (Estimate 50,000 - 150,000 HKD). © Sotheby's 2024

Provenance: Bluett & Sons Ltd., London.
Sotheby's London, 28th May 1968, lot 5.

Sotheby's. Ritual and Reality II, Hong Kong, 18 December 2024