A rare gold stem cup, Tang dynasty 唐 金高足盃

A rare gold stem cup,
Tang dynasty
唐 金高足盃

h. 5.3 cm; 91 g

Condition Report:
A minute dent to the mouthrim, otherwise in good overall condition.
口沿有一處極小磕碰，整體品相良好。

Catalogue Note:
Tang Dynasty gold and silver wares were deeply influenced by Percian forms and techniques, yet maintained their Chinese essence. The stem cup, however, scholars believe, was likely introduced to China from Persia around the 7th century AD, and was used as a religious ritual vessel, see related discussion by Margaret Medley, Metalwork and Chinese Ceramics, London, 1972, p. 5. Han Jianwu and He Daxin introduced that the production of Tang Dynasty gold and silver wares was mainly divided into three types of workshops: the central government, local government, and private workshops, and there were two main types of decorations for gold artifacts: ornate and plain. The ornate ones were often intricate and elaborately crafted, whereas the plain decorations, though less common, maintained a dignified and elegant appearance. See ‘Prodigious Workmanship: The Technic and Workshop of the Gold and Silver from Hejiacun’ in Selected Treasures from Hejiacun Tang Hoard, Beijing, 2003, pp. 20-30.

Compare with a gilt-bronze stem cup with a hunting scene, Tang dynasty, formerly in the collection of Dr. Carl Kempe (1884-1967), illustrated by Bo Gyllensvärd in Chinese Gold and Silver in the Carl Kempe Collection, Stockholm, 1953, fig. 109. Another example is a silver gilt cup from the Tang Dynasty in the Musée Guimet, Paris, illustrated in Han Wei, Ancient Chinese Gold, Paris, 2001, pl. 378. Compare also with a floral-patterned stemmed cup, Tang dynasty, sold at Paris rooms, 16 June, 2022, lot 87, and one of similar form sold at London rooms on 12 December, 1978, lot 240.

唐代金銀器無論是器型還是技術都深受波斯影響，然而又不失中土本色，如中國特有的花色與器型一直是唐代金銀器創作的主流。惟高足盃這一器型，有學者認為大概在公元七世紀方由波斯傳入中國，作為宗教禮器使用，見Margaret Medley，《Metalwork and Chinese Ceramics》，倫敦，1972年，頁5。唐代金銀器製作機構主要分中央官府作坊、地方官府作坊和私人作坊三種。關于中央官府製作機構的記載主要出自 《唐六典》，《舊唐書•職官;志》和《新唐書．百官志》等文獻。《唐六典》 卷二二少府監條載少府監的職武是 “学百工使巧之政令，總中尚、左尚、右尚、纖染、華治五署之官屬”，又載「掌治署令，峷烙鏬銅鐖器物之事。”雖末直接提到金銀器製作，然其注云“隋，大府統等冶署令二人，等金銀銅鐵器之屬。」

唐代金器裝飾分為花素兩種，花者多繁複滿工，銀者鎏金，金者塗銀；而素者反之較為少見，不失典雅莊重。參考卡爾肯普博士（1884-1967年）舊藏一件唐代鎏金銅鏨花狩獵紋高足小盃，器型與本件如出一轍，惟本件光素，見Bo Gyllensvärd，《Chinese Gold and Silver in the Carl Kempe Collection》，斯德哥爾摩，1953年，圖109。又可比較一件巴黎吉美美術館藏唐代銀鎏金小盃，見Han Wei，《Ancient Chinese Gold》，巴黎，2001年，圖版378。巴黎蘇富比2022年6月16日售出一件花鳥紋高足盃可資參考，拍品編號87；倫敦蘇富比亦售出一件類似器型之高足盃，1978年12月12日，拍品編號240。