Lot 645. A massive inscribed rhinoceros horn ‘Pine Tree’ libation cup, 17th century, 17.5 cm, 6 7/8 in. Estimate 600,000 — 800,000 HKD. Lot sold 812,500. Photo: Sotheby's

the deep flared sides finely carved and pierced in various levels of relief depicting old gnarled pine trees issuing from rockwork climbing up and around the body and over the rim, set to one end with three intertwined trunks curling up from the foot to the rim forming the handle, the base later inscribed with two seals in archaic script, one a poetic verse from the famous poem Pouring out wine for Pei Di by Wang Wei, the horn patinated to a rich dark honey tone.

Note: Meticulously executed to depict gnarled pine trees emerging from a rocky face, this cup is notable for its large size. The weightiness of the horn is highlighted through the robust subject matter; the auspicious scene of longevity and venerability represented through the  pine trees. Objects decorated with pine tree designs were invariably made for the scholar-literati who would have appreciated the vessel not only for its form, material and craftsmanship, but also for its symbolism.

The form of this libation cup is also remarkable for its broad proportions. Rhinoceros horn cups are more commonly known with a wide flared rim and narrow foot, in line with the natural tapering form of the horn. The wide foot of the present cup suggests that the horn of this rhinoceros was particularly large and thus rare.

A slightly smaller cup of related design, but typical tapering form, attributed to the 17th century, in the collection of Thomas Fok, is illustrated in Thomas Fok, Connoisseurship of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, Hong Kong, 1999, pl. 160, where it is noted that 'the absence of human figures further accentuates the sense of tranquility and ease' (p. 219), and sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 31st May 2010, lot 1808. Another cup of this type, but of slightly smaller size, from the collection of Kenyon V. Painter, was sold in our New York rooms, 19th March 2007, lot 380; another from the estate of Nils Nessim, was sold at Christie's New York, 25th March 2010, lot 819; and a much smaller example in the Palace Museum, Beijing, is published in Rhinoceros Horn in the Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2012, pl. 44. 

Sotheby's. Chinese Art, Hong Kong, 01 Jun 2017