A very rare carved rhinoceros horn 'Three Friends of Winter' box and cover


18th centuryOf flattened globular form, the domed cover deftly carved on the flattened top panel with branches of blossoming prunus, pine and bamboo, all encircled by a raised border repeated around the rims of the box and cover, the box raised on a recessed foot inscribed in low relief with a four-character seal mark reading Jing yi tang cang, the horn of a warm reddish-brown tone, box. 5.8cm (2 1/4in) diam. (3).
|十八世紀 犀角雕「歲寒三友」圓蓋盒陽文「景怡堂藏」篆書刻款Provenance:An American private collection, New YorkThe Songzhutang Collection, US, acquired from the above in 1986Christie's Hong Kong, 31 May 2010, lot 1830Angela Chua Collection, Hong Kong來源：美國紐約私人收藏松竹堂收藏，1986年購得香港佳士得，2010年5月31日，拍品1830香港蔡劉木蘭女士收藏Boxes are one of the rarest categories of rhinoceros horn carvings, possibly due to the difficulty in securing sufficient material to create a perfectly fitting uniform box and cover. Compare, however, a related rhinoceros horn circular box and cover, early 17th century, carved on the top with a chilong, from the Harvard University Art Museums, illustrated by T.Fok, Connoisseurship of Rhinoceros Horn Carving in China, Hong Kong, 1999, p.179, no.128. See also a related rhinoceros horn chrysanthemum-shaped box and cover, which was sold at Sotheby's London, 11 December 1990, lot 134.Pine, bamboo and prunus, combined are known as the Three Friends of Winter, known for their ability to thrive in the harshness of winter, representative of the virtuous upright gentleman embodying the virtuous of steadfastness, perseverance and resilience.此盒呈圓形，凸形光素口沿，微鼓蓋面刻松、竹、梅「歲寒三友」紋飾為主題，寓意君子清雅高潔的品質。底足內凹，中央刻陽文「景怡堂藏」篆書款。此盒製作精細，雕刻細膩，材質潤澤，造型圓鼓飽滿，或為盛香之用，且犀角器中甚少見到蓋盒造型，更顯此器之珍貴。參考哈佛大學博物館藏一件十七世紀犀角雕螭龍紋蓋盒，錄於霍滿棠，《中國犀角雕刻珍賞》，香港，1999年，頁179，圖128。另對比倫敦蘇富比售出一例，1990年12月11日，拍品134。