Mar 22, 2010 10:00 EST
Asian Works of Art
187
Chinese Ivory Carving of a Young Woman
Qing Dynasty
Dressed in European attire, with a blue outer coat above a long red skirt, with a white scarf around her neck, a wide brimmed straw hat and a single plume in her hair gathered up in a string of pearls over her serene face gazing downward, holding a hoe in one hand and the other resting on a basket of flowers, seated in a relaxed pose on a rockwork ledge bordered by flowering plants, all on a circular base carved with a pierced scrolling design. Height 10 1/4 inches.
The carved figure was inspired by a court painting in the collection at the Palace Museum, Beijing of an identically depicted young woman. This seldom viewed painting is published in Michael Sullivan's The Meeting of Eastern and Western Art from the Sixteenth Century to the Present Day, figure 42. In this publication the anonymous portrait attributed to Lang Shining (Guiseppe Castiglione, 1688-1768), reputed to be the concubine Xiang Fei is described as dressed en paysanne and dated to the mid 18th century.
Xiang Fei, known as the Fragrant Concubine and identified as Rong Fei, was the emperor Qianlong's only Uighur Muslim concubine. She entered Qianlong's palace as a sixth rank guerin in 1760, when she was twenty-seven. She did not bear Qianlong any children, however she was the recipient of Imperial gifts. Upon her death in 1788, she was buried in the Imperial Eastern Tombs. Her coffin bears an Arabic inscription acknowledging her Muslim faith.
For a similar item see Christie's, London, Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, May 15, 2007, lot 61
Sold for $150,000
Estimated at $50,000 - $70,000
Includes Buyer's Premium
Chinese Ivory Carving of a Young Woman
Qing Dynasty
Dressed in European attire, with a blue outer coat above a long red skirt, with a white scarf around her neck, a wide brimmed straw hat and a single plume in her hair gathered up in a string of pearls over her serene face gazing downward, holding a hoe in one hand and the other resting on a basket of flowers, seated in a relaxed pose on a rockwork ledge bordered by flowering plants, all on a circular base carved with a pierced scrolling design. Height 10 1/4 inches.
The carved figure was inspired by a court painting in the collection at the Palace Museum, Beijing of an identically depicted young woman. This seldom viewed painting is published in Michael Sullivan's The Meeting of Eastern and Western Art from the Sixteenth Century to the Present Day, figure 42. In this publication the anonymous portrait attributed to Lang Shining (Guiseppe Castiglione, 1688-1768), reputed to be the concubine Xiang Fei is described as dressed en paysanne and dated to the mid 18th century.
Xiang Fei, known as the Fragrant Concubine and identified as Rong Fei, was the emperor Qianlong's only Uighur Muslim concubine. She entered Qianlong's palace as a sixth rank guerin in 1760, when she was twenty-seven. She did not bear Qianlong any children, however she was the recipient of Imperial gifts. Upon her death in 1788, she was buried in the Imperial Eastern Tombs. Her coffin bears an Arabic inscription acknowledging her Muslim faith.
For a similar item see Christie's, London, Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, May 15, 2007, lot 61
Color on ivory worn off in many areas, so color is not as intense as it was originally. There is one very small crack under brim of hat (see photo), a few small age cracks on underside of base.
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Auction: Asian Works of Art, Mar 22, 2010
