A rare painted pottery figure of a prancing horse


Tang Dynasty Superbly modelled in an elegant posture with the right foreleg raised high and the head cocked to the left, the mane finely combed, the mouth agape beneath flared nostrils and bulging eyes, lavishly caparisoned with a tassel-hung bridle, medallion-applied crupper surrounding the saddle covered in tied cloths and secured to large mud-guards, all above well defined, muscular legs, with overall traces of polychrome and gilding over white slip. 47cm (18 1/2in) long.
|The Property of a Gentleman 士紳藏品唐 陶胎彩繪馬俑 Provenance: Gisèle Croës Arts D'Extreme Orient, Brussels, 1991Jean-Yves Ollivier Collection來源：布魯塞爾古董商吉賽爾藝廊，1991年歐宗易先生珍藏The modelling of the present lot is impressive for its sense of energetic movement. The finely painted, unglazed surface complements the confident lively modelling, allowing the potter's artistry to dominate. The Tang emperor Xuanzong (reigned AD 712-756), a great patron of the arts, famously kept a trained troupe of 'dressage'-trained horses for his entertainment at court and this may explain the presence of this type of a refined prancing horse amongst contemporaneous tomb furniture. According to Zhang Yue (667-731), a leading court official, these 'heavenly horses' came from west of the sea and danced with bent knees and holding cups in their mouths '...nimbly prancing, keeping in step with the music'.In 1972, similar 'dancing' horses were excavated from the high-ranking tomb of Zhang Shigui, commanding officer of Tang emperor Taizong (r.629-649). Comparable examples of pottery prancing horses, Tang dynasty, can also be found in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (acc.no. 67.62.2) and the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (acc.no.LI1301.409). See also a related horse, dated to the first half of the 8th century, from the Idemitsu Museum, Tokyo, illustrated by W.Watson, La Céramique Tang et Liao, Fribourg, 1984, p.194.A similar pair of pottery figures of prancing horses, Tang dynasty, was sold at Sotheby's New York, 27 March 2003, lot 32. 馬曲項，高抬前腿，身體重心後傾，為典型的控馬姿勢，紅色鬃毛結辮，馬鞍兩側有擋泥，俱繪紅彩，其他皮件繪黑彩。此馬塑造十分生動，抗拒之勢若可見前面控馬之人，馬口微張，若聞嘶鳴之聲。馬俑廣見於唐代墓葬，墓葬等級愈高則塑造愈精美生動。類似的控馬陶塑可參考兩例，一為紐約大都會博物館藏，館藏編號67.62.2；一件為牛津阿什莫林博物館所藏，館藏編號LI1301.409。東京出光美術館藏有一件大致相似的他例，定為八世紀前半葉，見W.Watson著，《La Céramique Tang et Liao（唐代和遼代陶瓷）》，弗里堡，1984年，頁194。另可參考一對彩繪馬俑，2003年3月27日售於紐約蘇富比，拍品32號。Oxford Authentication Ltd公司熱釋光檢測結果（1991年4月17日，編號566q46）顯示年代與本拍品年代一致。The result of Oxford Authentication Ltd. thermoluminescence test no.566q46 dated 17 April 1991, is consistent with the dating of this lot.