Gui or food vessel in bronze. Made in China, 1st phase, Shang Yin Dynasty. Measurements:
h: 7 in; w across handles: 12 3/4 in; diam at mouth: 9 in Provenance:
Henry Brown collection; his sale, Sotheby's, 25 March 1947, lot 84 (illus.), purchased by John Sparks Ltd. for Sir William Burrell, £250; by whom gifted to the Corporation of the City of Glasgow, 1947.
Printed sources
Sotheby & Co., 25 March 1947, Catalogue of important Chinese art, the property of Henry Brown, Esq., and others, lot 84 (illus.)
Manuscript sources
John Sparks Ltd., Day Book 1947 p.537, 25 March 1947: 'Lot 84. Bronze kuei’.
Sir William Burrell, Purchase Book 1947(1) p.42: ' A fine and massive early bronze food vessel (Kuei) of circular shape with slightly everted rim, the exterior with a broad band of bosses in high relief between two narrower bands of archaic fret ornament, the top band divided by rams heads, the bottom by small lugs; the double loop handles boldly modelled with dragon head masks; the interior with a pictogram. Shang-Yin Dynasty. 6 7/8 x 11 1/2"’. |
