Lot 163. In the Style of Tang Yin (1470-1523), Double Portrait of an older and a young man in a Boat on a Lotus Pond, dated 1534. Handscroll, 45 x 191 cm, ink and colors on silk. Estimate 10.000/15.000 €. Lot sold 58.000 €. Courtesy Nagel

Poetic inscription by the artist and signature: "In the summer of the jiawu year (1534) I have written [this inscription], Tang Bohu". One double-seal of the artist: "Tang", "Yin". Following the painting one colophon in seal script on gold speckled paper, signed: "Written by Hetian Du Ruilian (19th century)." Three seals: "Du Ruilian yin", "renzi Hanlin" a. "mozhai". Wear, minor restorations.

Provenance: Property from an old German diplomate colection, bought in Beijing between 1915 and 1917.

Note: Tang Yin, sobriquet Bohu, was a prominent painter from Suzhou. He is called one of the Four Great Masters of the Ming Dynasty. He is especially famous for his delicate rendering of figures and exquisite landscape painting. This fine painting reminds of his style in the beautiful depiction of the lotus plants and the two extremely fine executed figures which are obviously portraits of real people. The writer of the colophon, Du Ruiliang, was an official and a prominent collector of calligraphies and paintings from Taixing in the Province Jiangsu. In 1881 he published his book on calligraphy and painting, Gufenge shuhua ji .