Arte Cinese A monumental temple bellChina, Ming

Chinese Art A monumental temple bellChina, Ming dynasty, reign of Hong Zhi, 15th century. . Cm 55,00 x 70,00. An impressive temple bell made of cast iron with elaborate relief decoration arranged in overlapping bands of which the largest central contains the numerous dedicatory inscriptions, while the lower edge, embellished with a sequence of trigrams, presents eight large beating teeth, alluding to the Eight Great Immortals of Taoism. From the reading of the numerous inscriptions we know that this piece, of considerable workmanship and importance, was commissioned by the wealthy Yang family, of Shanxi, to be placed in the Hall of the Goddess of Mercy (Guanyin) and was cast in February of the eleventh year of the reign of the emperor Hong Zhi (AD 1498), thanks to the donations of the many people whose names are engraved in eternal memory on the bronze surface.For a similar example see: Sothebys, London, Fine Chinese Works of Art, 05 November 2008, lot 111.