Lot n° 86
Estimation :
300000 - 400000
EUR
Result with fees
Result
: 914 400EUR
CHINE - époque Qianlong (1736-1795)
Square-shaped nephrite spinach-green cachet surmounted by a lion, left forepaw resting on the wrapped ball.
On the reverse, the inscription Qianlong qin xian zhi bao (乾隆親賢之寶) : Treasure of the Qianlong Emperor, appreciative of talented people.
Height: 7.2 cm
Sides: 8.7 cm
Provenance: Rene Georgi (1871-1961).
AN IMPERIAL SPINACH JADE SEAL Qianlong Period (1736-1795)
Of square size, surmounted by a seated lion with his left paw resting on a brocade ball. The seal face is carved with the inscription Qianlong qin xian zhi bao, (乾隆親賢之寶): Treasure of the Qianlong emperor, appreciative of talented people.
Size 7.2 x 8.7 x 8.7 cm
Provenance: collection René Georgi (1871-1961).
清乾隆 碧玉獅紐 "乾隆親賢之寶"
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Carved in spinach green nephrite, this cachet is surmounted by a charming seated lion holding a ribboned ball in its left front paw, on the reverse side, the inscription in Zhuanshu Qianlong qin xian zhi bao is finely carved. It is an outstanding example of imperial cachet of the Qing Dynasty, with its exquisite carving, elegance and beauty.
The development of Chinese seal culture reached an unprecedented peak during the Ming and Qing dynasties, when scholars sought an ideal combination of calligraphy, painting and sealing to achieve perfection in their artistic creations. The large number of magnificent seals of the Qing emperors reflects the seal culture of the society at that time.
Among the twelve emperors of the Qing Dynasty, the Qianlong Emperor (1736-1795) possessed both the largest number of stamps and the most remarkable in quality. According to historical records, the Qianlong emperor owned more than 1,800 stamps during his lifetime, of which more than 500 were in common use. About 1,000 of them are kept in the Forbidden City Museum in Beijing.
The stamps vary in size and shape: square, round, rectangular, oval... The materials of which they are made are equally diverse: nephrite, wood, gold, silver, bronze, precious stones... This stamp illustrates the fact that the best nephrite became the most popular material for imperial stamps. The historian Wei Hong (main period of activity: 25-57 AD) is quoted in Shiji Jijie (The Collected Works of the Records of the Grand Historian) as saying, "Before the Qin Dynasty (221 BC - 207 BC), ministers used gold and nephrite for their seals, carving them with dragon and tiger buttons. After the Qin dynasty, only the emperors' stamps could be carved in nephrite, the ministers did not even dare to use it anymore. For thousands of years, most of the important seals of the Chinese court were made of nephrite, hence the term "nephrite seal" (Yu Xi) was used for the court seal. During the Qing Dynasty, most imperial seals were made of white or celadon nephrite. After the victory of the war with Altishahr in the 18th century, the court used more and more spinach green nephrite from this region.
Today, imperial seals from the Qianlong period have become an important basis for identifying the authenticity of Qianlong imperial scrolls and paintings and for determining their period. Qianlong's use of imperial seals in calligraphy and painting was closely related to his politics, culture and literary tastes. The inscriptions, forms, and materials of his stamps evolved accordingly from one period to another.
As the Japanese historian Sugimura Yuzo writes in the preface to his book The Qianlong Emperor: "The central figure of eighteenth-century China, the world's greatest cultural nation, was the ruler, the Qianlong Emperor. He was born at the beginning of the century and died at the age of 89 in 1799. This emperor left behind a legacy of great deeds during his sixty-year reign, and most of the precious objects in Chinese art history are now associated with him." This Qianlong imperial seal is a rare opportunity to truly appreciate the political and cultural connotations of the Qianlong emperor.
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