A KESI 'PARADISE FLYCATCHER' CIVIL OFFICIAL BADGE, BUZI, LATE 19TH CENTURY
A KESI 'PARADISE FLYCATCHER' CIVIL OFFICIAL BADGE, BUZI, LATE 19TH CENTURY
This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve
China. Of square form, finely woven and painted, featuring a paradise flycatcher signifying the 9th civil rank, the bird facing the red sun with wings spread standing on one foot atop a rock rising from a lishui border, surrounded by scrolling clouds, Buddhist emblems, bats, and auspicious flowers, all within a wan-symbol band.
Provenance: Oliver Klitgaard, Denmark, by 2012. Jorgen Ruben, acquired from the above. In the Jorgen Ruben Collection for 14 years.
Oliver Klitgaard is a Danish antiques dealer and collector specializing in Asian art, archaeology, ethnographic material, and antiquities. Based in Copenhagen, he is known for his longstanding friendship with Prince Henrik of Denmark, with whom he shared a passion for jade and Asian art, undertaking numerous collecting trips to China over more than two decades.
Jorgen Ruben is a Danish art dealer and collector who has been active for over four decades and is highly regarded in the fields of Asian art and classical antiquities. Raised in an art-conscious family, Ruben was exposed early to both modern painting and European decorative arts. He began working in the art trade in the mid-1970s, first with Persian rugs and later with antiques, while travels to Iran and a visit to Persepolis sparked his lasting interest in antiquity. After studies in Copenhagen and London, he worked in England with a dealer in early furniture, before travelling widely in Latin America and Asia, deepening his knowledge of regional art and culture. In 1984 Ruben opened a gallery in Copenhagen dealing in Asian antiquities. He was later active in London and, in the early 2000s, operated the Brussels gallery Classic Art. Much of his career, however, has been conducted privately from home, selling by appointment to collectors, galleries, and museums. Ruben has always bought selectively, choosing only works that deeply engaged him, and often keeping them for many years until placing them with a collector he felt truly understood them.
Important Note: For essential information on the
Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger and provenance documentation please visit here: www.zacke.at/rubencollection_ledger
Condition: Good condition with wear, some sections of the seam open, few loose threads, little bleeding of the colors, and minor soiling.
Dimensions: Size 30.4 x 29.2 cm
By the mid-17th century, rank badges were transferred from court robes to a surcoat worn over them, reflecting Manchu influence on the reform of court dress. At the same time, the form of buzi (insignia badges) became more strictly standardized as square, and their placement on an outer garment required the front badge to be divided vertically to accommodate the opening of the surcoat.
Literature comparison:
Compare a related civil rank badge with a paradise flycatcher, ninth degree civil, dated about 1880, in the Indianapolis Museum of art, Newfields, accession number 50.21.
Buyer's Premium
30%
Estimate
Time, Location
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A KESI 'PARADISE FLYCATCHER' CIVIL OFFICIAL BADGE, BUZI, LATE 19TH CENTURY
This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve
China. Of square form, finely woven and painted, featuring a paradise flycatcher signifying the 9th civil rank, the bird facing the red sun with wings spread standing on one foot atop a rock rising from a lishui border, surrounded by scrolling clouds, Buddhist emblems, bats, and auspicious flowers, all within a wan-symbol band.
Provenance: Oliver Klitgaard, Denmark, by 2012. Jorgen Ruben, acquired from the above. In the Jorgen Ruben Collection for 14 years.
Oliver Klitgaard is a Danish antiques dealer and collector specializing in Asian art, archaeology, ethnographic material, and antiquities. Based in Copenhagen, he is known for his longstanding friendship with Prince Henrik of Denmark, with whom he shared a passion for jade and Asian art, undertaking numerous collecting trips to China over more than two decades.
Jorgen Ruben is a Danish art dealer and collector who has been active for over four decades and is highly regarded in the fields of Asian art and classical antiquities. Raised in an art-conscious family, Ruben was exposed early to both modern painting and European decorative arts. He began working in the art trade in the mid-1970s, first with Persian rugs and later with antiques, while travels to Iran and a visit to Persepolis sparked his lasting interest in antiquity. After studies in Copenhagen and London, he worked in England with a dealer in early furniture, before travelling widely in Latin America and Asia, deepening his knowledge of regional art and culture. In 1984 Ruben opened a gallery in Copenhagen dealing in Asian antiquities. He was later active in London and, in the early 2000s, operated the Brussels gallery Classic Art. Much of his career, however, has been conducted privately from home, selling by appointment to collectors, galleries, and museums. Ruben has always bought selectively, choosing only works that deeply engaged him, and often keeping them for many years until placing them with a collector he felt truly understood them.
Important Note: For essential information on the
Jorgen Ruben Gallery Ledger and provenance documentation please visit here: www.zacke.at/rubencollection_ledger
Condition: Good condition with wear, some sections of the seam open, few loose threads, little bleeding of the colors, and minor soiling.
Dimensions: Size 30.4 x 29.2 cm
By the mid-17th century, rank badges were transferred from court robes to a surcoat worn over them, reflecting Manchu influence on the reform of court dress. At the same time, the form of buzi (insignia badges) became more strictly standardized as square, and their placement on an outer garment required the front badge to be divided vertically to accommodate the opening of the surcoat.
Literature comparison:
Compare a related civil rank badge with a paradise flycatcher, ninth degree civil, dated about 1880, in the Indianapolis Museum of art, Newfields, accession number 50.21.
Buyer's Premium
30%
Estimate
Time, Location
Auction House
