Lot 39. An inscribed archaic bronze pouring vessel (Yi), Late Western Zhou dynasty. Length 13⅞ in., 35.1 cm. Lot sold: 100,800 USD (Estimate: 40,000 - 60,000 USD). © Sothebys.

the interior cast with a sixteen-character inscription reading bo X X zuo X qi wannian zizi sunsun yongbaoyongxiang.

Literature: Rose Kerr et al., Chinese Antiquities from the Wou Kiuan Collection. Wou Lien-Pai Museum, Hong Kong , 2011, pl. 22.

Note: Notable for its bold yet powerful casting, this vessel is a good example of yi produced in the late Western Zhou dynasty. The boat-shaped vessel, together with a U-shaped spout, appear to have been derived from earlier gong vessels. Bronze yi were used together with water basins (pan) in ritual ceremonies for the cleansing of the hands. The robustness of the vessel provides an attractive contrast with the abstract zoomorphic band beneath the rim, along with the large dragon-form loop handle.

Compare a similar bronze yi from the Bella and P.P. Chiu Collection, illustrated in Jessica Rawson, The Bella and P.P. Chiu Collection of Ancient Chinese Bronzes, Hong Kong, 1988, pl. 31, and later sold in our London rooms, 7th June 2000, lot 12; and two others, both in the Shanghai Museum, one, the San Bo yi, published in Wu Zhenfeng, Shangzhou qingtongqi mingwen ji tuxiang jicheng [Compendium of inscriptions and images of bronzes from the Shang and Zhou dynasties], vol. 26, Shanghai, 2012, no. 14875, and the other, You Bo Jun yi, illustrated in Chen Peifen, Xia Shang Zhou qingtongqi yanjiu [Study of archaic bronzes from Shang, Shang and Zhou dynasties], Shanghai, Western Zhou, vol. 2, 2004, pl. 425.

Sotheby's. A Journey Through China's History. The Dr Wou Kiuan Collection Part 1, New York, 22 March 2022