A MAGNIFICENT AND VERY RARE PAIR OF ZITAN-FRAMED KINGFISHER FEATHER-INLAID 'LANDSCAPE' SCREENS

Qianlong

Qianlong
Each exquisitely decorated with lavish use of turquoise-blue kingfisher feathers and other materials reserved against a luxurious velvet ground, depicting rugged mountain and lake landscapes dotted with pavilions and pagodas, the leaves, tree trunks and rocks all made from kingfisher feathers, one screen depicting a boy-attendant carrying a guqin to a seated sage below pine trees, with swirling clouds amidst the tall craggy peaks, the other screen with figures in a house gazing out to the lake with a sampan, all set in a shaped skillfully carved zitan frame carved with archaistic scrolls in low relief and stand pierced with floral sprays. 111.2cm (43 3/4in) high x 56.7cm (22 1/4in) wide x 31.2cm (12 1/4in) deep (2).

清乾隆 紫檀邊座點翠山水人物圖插屏一對

Provenance:
H.E. Monsieur Aleksander Vlangali (1823-1908), Russian Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary in China (1863-1873)
Spink & Son Ltd., London
Mrs E. A. Parry (1879-1977), London, acquired from the above on 31 July 1926, and thence by descent

Published, Illustrated and Exhibited:
Royal Academy of Arts, International Exhibition of Chinese Art, London, 1935-1936, pp.215-216, nos.2500 and 2511.

來源：
俄駐華公使亞歷山大·弗蘭加利（1823-1908）旧藏
倫敦古董商Spink & Son Ltd.
倫敦E. A. Parry夫人（1879-1977）舊藏，於1926年7月31日購自上者，並由後人保存迄今

展覽著錄：
皇家藝術學院，《中國藝術國際展覽會》，倫敦，1935-1936年，頁215-216，編號2500与2511

Aleksander Vlangali descended from nobility of St. Petersburg. He participated as an officer in the Crimean War of 1853-1856. In the late 1850s he entered the Imperial Russian diplomatic service and was promoted in July 1863 to the position of the Russian Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary in China, a position which he held until November 1873. In 1865 he was made Major General.

亞歷山大·弗蘭加利（Aleksander Vlangali）為出身於聖彼得堡的俄國貴族。曾作為軍官參加了 1853-1856年的克里米亞戰爭。十九世紀五十年代後期，任職俄羅斯帝國外交部門，並於1863年7月任命為俄駐華公使，直至1873年11月。1865年，亞歷山大被擢升為少將。

This important pair of screens was included in the International Exhibition of Chinese Art held at the Royal Academy of Arts, Burlington House, London, in 1935-1936. This seminal exhibition had the patronage of their Majesties King George V and Queen Mary, and the President of the Chinese Republic. It included over 3,000 objects. These were loaned by the Chinese Government, including pieces shown for the first time outside China, objects from the collection of Sir Percival David, which were exhibited for the first time in public, pieces from the British Royal Collection, and from many important museums including the British Museum, V&A, the Louvre, Guimet, Cernuschi, Topkapi Saray, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Cleveland, Kansas City, Cologne, Dresden, and from notable private collectors including HRH Crown Prince of Sweden, Alan Barlow, R.C. Bruce, Buchanan-Jardine, Mr & Mrs Alfred Clark, Dr Leonard Gow, C.T. Loo, Carl Kempe, H.J. Oppenheim, Oscar Raphael, F. Schiller, Mr & Mrs Walter Sedgwick, A. Stoclet, S.D. Winkworth and Prof. W. Perceval Yetts - the roll call of the greatest collectors of Chinese art in the west in the 20th century. E.A. Parry loaned 6 pieces to the Exhibition, demonstrating the superb quality of the Collection and the high esteem in which it was held by the Exhibition Committee, which was directed by Sir Percival David. These pieces were admired to this date in the Parry family homes and this is the first time since the 1935-1936 Exhibition that they are seen in public once again.

The remarkable screens demonstrate the exceptional artistry of the 18th century craftsmen reproducing idyllic landscapes in variety of materials and in the case of the present pair, utilising the brilliant enduring colours of kingfisher feathers meticulously inlaid within the design.

Kingfisher feathers were admired and prized in ancient China, and as early as the Spring and Autumn period (770-475 BC) they adorned clothes and accessories. A Tang dynasty poem by Chen Zi'ang, 661-702 AD) reads:

The halcyon kingfisher nests in the South Sea realm;
Cock and hen in groves of jewelled trees;
How could they know that the thoughts of lovely women;
Covet them as highly as yellow gold?'

The popularity of the use of the prized feathers in appliqué technique continued into the 18th century, with the majority of workshops specialising in utilising the feathers for decoration and in carving the precious zitan wood, located in Guangzhou. Such works were commissioned by the Qing Court and made as Imperial-tribute. Compare with a pair of related screens with kingfisher feather decoration, Qianlong, in the Shengyang Palace Museum, and a further panel in the Forbidden City, illustrated by B.Jackson, Kingfisher Blue: Treasures of an Ancient Chinese Art, Berkeley, Toronto, 2001, pp.30-31 and 186. See also three other screens decorated with kingfisher feathers, mid Qing dynasty, made in Guangzhou as Imperial-tribute, illustrated by Hu Desheng, Ming Qing Gu Gongting Jia Zhu Da Guan, vol.1, Beijing, 2006, nos.388, 394 and 396.

The remarkable screens showing idyllic mountain landscapes and an attendant carrying a wrapped guqin to a scholar, were inspired by literati paintings and ideals. Images of the private retreat proliferated among the scholar-officials from the early Song dynasty, when visions of the natural hierarchy became metaphors for the well-regulated state. The scholars extolled the virtues of self-cultivation and asserted their identity as literati through poetry, calligraphy, and painting. The images of old trees, bamboo, rocks, and retirement retreats created by these scholar-artists became emblems of their character and spirit. Pine trees, for example, remaining green even during the winter, came to represent the sturdy and morally upright scholar. The conquering Manchu Emperors desired very much to show themselves as the custodians of Han Chinese culture and adopted it fully, including the ideals of literati from the Yangzi delta region.

In addition to literati landscape paintings, the Qianlong Emperor also showed himself as a custodian and connoisseur of China's ancient heritage by championing archaism as both an aesthetic and intellectual movement. The superbly carved and prized zitan frames and stands follow the Qianlong Emperor's taste for archaism, utilising motifs seen on early ritual bronze vessels, such as taotie masks and S-shaped scrolls.

With its smooth and silk-like texture, fine and dense grain and strikingly deep lustre, zitan wood has long been the most prized wood for furniture makers in China. The majority of zitan furniture was made for the Imperial Court and the furnishing of palace halls. The slow growth of Zitan leading to diminishing supplies, made it one of the most treasured materials in the country. The Qing Court therefore took measures to protect zitan by restricting and regulating its use and only a small amount was ever allowed outside the Palace.

The elaborate workmanship of the reticulated floral designs of the present stands closely compare with the reticulated floral borders framing a zitan screen from the Qing Court Collection, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Furniture of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Hong Kong, 2002, p.238, no.203. See also the reticulated floral frieze decorating a zitan table, Qianlong, also from the Qing Court Collection, illustrated in ibid., p.143, no.127.

Compare the present screens with a related painted ivory and kingfisher feather-decorated wall panel within a zitan veneered frame, 18th/19th century, which was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 15 September 2009, lot 288.

本拍品曾借展1935至1936年於倫敦皇家藝術學院伯靈頓宮舉辦的中國藝術國際展覽會。這一史無前例的展覽得到了中英政府及雙方人士的大力支持，由雙方元首擔任名譽主持人，英王喬治五世和瑪麗王后為監理。展品共計三千餘件，中國政府應邀出借包括故宮文物在內的近千件藏品，也是藏品首次在中國境外展出；展覽還包括了英國皇室的中國文物收藏，以及來自世界各地重要博物館（如大英博物館、維多利亞和阿爾伯特博物館、盧浮宮、吉美博物館、賽努奇博物館、託卡比皇宮博物館、大都會藝術博物館、克利夫蘭藝術博物館、堪薩斯城納爾遜-阿特金斯藝術博物館、科隆博物館、德累斯頓博物館等）與著名私人藏家（如瑞典王儲、Alan Barlow爵士、R.C. Bruce、Buchanan-Jardine男爵、克拉克伉儷（Mr & Mrs Alfred Clark）、Leonard Gow博士、盧芹齋、卡爾·坎普（Carl Kempe）、H.J. Oppenheim、Oscar Raphael, F. Schiller、Walter Sedgwick伉儷、A. Stoclet、S.D. Winkworth、W. Perceval Yetts教授等）的公私收藏精品，名單幾乎囊括了二十世紀西方世界最為重要的中國藝術收藏家。 E.A. Parry向本次展覽出借了六件藏品，這也顯示了其收藏品味之卓越及展覽籌備委員會對其之激賞。展覽結束後，Parry氏藏品淡出公眾視野，僅供家族成員賞玩；本次拍賣是1936年以來本品首次出現在公眾面前。

此二屏均以奢華極致的點翠為飾，並綴以各式珍材，呈現引人入勝的山水亭台景致。其中一屏為松下高士圖，一侍童正抱琴走在橋上，遠景處雲霧繚繞，層巒疊嶂。另一屏為湖畔遠眺，湖中有一舢舨獨遊，惹人遐想。十八世紀的中國工匠嫻熟巧妙地利用各式珍貴材質在此再現詩般山水，尤以點翠的鑲制為最精巧，其燦爛持久的色彩無疑是畫面中最奪目之處，但又與其他材質配合無間。二屏均以精雕紫檀為邊框，飾以竊曲紋及纏枝花卉紋。

點翠向來是最為人所珍視的工藝材質之一。早在春秋時期，就被用於裝點衣裳首飾。唐代詩人陳子昂曾有詩云：
「翡翠巢南海，雄雌珠樹林。何知美人意，驕愛比黃金。」

點翠工藝在十八世紀更是蔚為流行，當時大多數以點翠及紫檀雕刻聞名之作坊均位於廣州，大量制作進貢御用器物。可參見瀋陽故宮博物院所藏一對清乾隆點翠插屏，以及故宮博物院內的另一相似之例，均著錄於B.Jackson著，《Kingfisher Blue: Treasures of an Ancient Chinese Art》，伯克利，多倫多，2001年，頁30-31及186。另有三座同產於廣州用於進上之清代中期點翠插屏，見胡德生著，《故宮博物院藏明清宮廷家具大觀（上）》，北京，2006年，編號388、394、與396。

本例中松下高士並抱琴侍童一屏尤有士人畫風。自宋代始，此類林間高士隱逸圖就在士人間流行，其中之山水諧和亦象徵國泰民安。由於詩書畫等藝均被認為是自我修養及道德風範之彰顯，士人畫中的蒼樹翠竹、山石亭台在其作者筆下亦各有寓意。如四季長青的松樹就被認為是堅貞高潔的士人品格之象徵。這種圖像系統，包括盛於江浙地區的文士理想傳統，也為渴望以漢文化之繼承和守護者形象示人的滿族帝王所全盤接受。

除服膺於士人山水畫，乾隆皇帝亦在審美趣味和治學上以復古為號，以此彰顯自己作為中國古代文化遺產之守護者及鑒賞者的身分。此二屏精雕細作的紫檀屏框及底座均符合乾隆時期的復古趣味，其上紋飾如饕餮紋及竊曲紋等均可溯源於古代青銅禮器。

紫檀木質地光滑如絲，紋理細密，光澤悅目，一直是中國家具製作者最為推崇珍視的木材。大部分紫檀家具都是御用之物。紫檀木緩慢的生長過程亦令其成為最珍罕的木材之一，因此清廷對其使用有著嚴格的限制，宮廷外的紫檀製品亦因之極為鮮見。本品紫檀底座上極為精細富麗的纏枝花紋樣可媲美清宮舊藏的一座清紫檀嵌玻璃畫屏之座框裝飾，見《故宮博物院藏文物珍品大系：明清家具》，香港，2002，頁238，編號203。是書中亦收錄有清宮舊藏中另一裝飾紋樣類似之清乾隆紫檀西番蓮紋梯形桌，見頁143，編號127。

香港佳士得曾於2009年9月15日售出一幅十八/十九世紀紫檀邊框彩繪象牙並點翠掛屏，拍品編號288，可資比對。