三彩筆記 vol.29 蘇富比紐約：87.4萬美元（約678萬港元）售出，唐三彩貼花注子，坂本五郎舊藏 - Sotheby’s NY, Tang Sancai Ewer, Sakamoto Gorō, Sold for 874,000 USD / 6.78m HKD

蘇富比紐約 2016｜唐三彩貼花注子｜坂本五郎舊藏

成交價：USD 874,000

來源（Provenance）

倫敦佳士得1970 年 10 月 12 日拍品編號 95

著錄（Literature）

長谷部樂爾（Gakuji Hasebe）、林屋晴三（Seizo Hayashiya）《中國古陶瓷／Chinese Ceramics》第一卷，東京，1971 年，圖版 45

Anthony du Boulay Christie’s Pictorial History of Chinese Ceramics 倫敦，1984 年，第 21 頁，圖 3

陶質。器身製作精細，呈卵形腹，自外撇圈足起，向上收束為雙束腰頸，接以高直筒形、內凹杯狀口。口沿與肩部之間以一條繩索狀把手相連。器身滿施貼花裝飾：大型四瓣葉形貼飾，其間以小花朵分隔，並輔以三瓣式花枝與成串花頭。肩部飾三道刻劃弦紋，其下懸垂四組三瓣花枝，分列於兩側環形附耳之間；把手對側設一枚直立之「喙」形突起。

通體施以象牙白、綠與琥珀色三彩釉，釉色濃豔而層次分明；釉水於足部匯聚呈橄欖綠色，並局部流覆至足底內側，於底部不規則止釉，露出赭色胎體。口內施一層柔和的淡青白釉。附日本木盒（三只）。

品相（Condition）

考量器形結構之複雜程度，整體保存狀況極為優良。僅見數處淺層磕缺：最大一處位於一枚四瓣花貼飾尖端，尺寸約 1.3 × 0.9 公分（拍賣圖錄中可見）。另於「流口／喙」尖端及杯狀口下緣各有一小缺。其餘部位尚見若干細小淺層缺失。器底可見一小處熱釋光鑽孔，並伴隨若干燒成瑕疵，另有一處約 1.2 × 0.9 公分之淺缺。其餘輕微磨耗與局部釉面剝落，均屬年代所見之正常狀況。

三彩中的繁麗植飾

Regina Krahl

這件造型華麗、氣勢張揚的注器，集中體現了唐代前半期（618–907）中國宮廷文化所具有的國際性精神與奢麗氛圍，亦正是這一時期成為中國歷史上最為輝煌階段之一的重要原因。儘管此器在製作工藝、器形結構、裝飾方式與釉色運用上均屬孤例，但其整體水準，足以代表唐代陶瓷工藝所能達至的最高成就。

自唐都長安（今西安）出發，橫越塔克拉瑪干沙漠，通往中亞與中東的那條漫長而危險的陸上交通線，即後世所稱的絲綢之路，將中國腹地與遙遠的文化圈層緊密連結，促成了貨物流通與思想交流的蓬勃發展。唐代的長安是一座無可比擬的國際大都會，據估計人口多達百萬，其中包含來自亞洲各地、規模可觀的外來族群。外國商人於充滿異國情調的西市販售舶來品，外國使節亦不斷向朝廷進貢異域器物。在如此競爭激烈而高度多元的環境中，中國工匠得以直接接觸大量不同的造型語彙與製作技術，並被迫迅速加以吸收與轉化。

唐代前半期，隨著貴族階層日益富裕且審美要求不斷提高，手工藝者的創造力與技術水準出現了前所未有的飛躍。在中國漫長的歷史進程中，幾乎沒有任何一個時代，能如唐代一般，將「陶土」如此成功地轉化為奢華之物；此件注子正是最具說服力的例證。其設計精妙、製作嚴謹，整體效果極具戲劇張力。器物輪廓清晰而銳利，大膽結合圓柱形、外鼓與內凹等不同曲面。以貼模方式製作的花卉與葉形浮飾、自由塑形的繩索狀把手，以及施釉均勻、流動自然的三彩釉色，共同表明陶工有意將此器打造成一件極盡鋪陳的傑作。

陶器上所施的貼模浮雕裝飾，令人聯想到貴金屬器物上鑲嵌寶石與珍珠的裝飾效果。可資對照者，如陝西臨潼青山寺遺址出土的一件唐代鑲寶金舍利容器，載於《中國美術全集・工藝美術編》第十卷（北京，1987），圖版 76，亦見於《隋唐文化》（香港，1990），第 275 頁，圖版 5。此一裝飾技法早在北齊時期（550–577）即已在陶瓷上流行，正值中亞風格開始對中國工藝產生強烈影響之際。關於此一問題，Suzanne G. Valenstein 曾以紐約大都會藝術博物館藏一件六世紀綠釉貼花陶罐為例加以討論（〈Preliminary Findings on a 6th-Century Earthenware Jar〉，《Oriental Art》，第 43 卷第 4 期，1997/8 年，第 2–13 頁）。

器身所見的蔓草形與阿拉伯式卷葉紋樣，亦令人聯想到佛教造像中菩薩所佩戴的珠寶裝飾；例如西安出土、著名的白色大理石觀音菩薩殘軀，其瓔珞裝飾可見於《中國美術全集・雕塑編》第四卷（北京，1988），圖版 53（圖 1）。此類富於幻想性的花葉與棕櫚葉紋樣，在唐代早期的藝術作品中極為常見，並以多種不同形式出現在各類媒材之上。例如：河南鞏縣出土唐代陶馬身上的鞍具裝飾（同書，圖版 156）；新疆吐魯番阿斯塔那一座紀年為公元 688 年墓葬中出土的唐代木雕天王俑，其甲冑上的彩繪紋樣，收錄於《China: Dawn of a Golden Age, 200–750 AD》展覽圖錄（大都會藝術博物館，2004–2005），編號 180；陝西寶雞出土的一件銅製天王像（同書，編號 230）；同樣來自阿斯塔那的織錦紋樣，一件年代為六世紀末至七世紀初，另一件出自紀年為公元 778 年的墓葬（同書，編號 235、242）；青海都蘭熱水墓地出土的一件刺繡絲質馬鞍毯（同書，編號 247）；以及陝西岐山出土、曾展於香港藝術館「長安珍寶：絲綢之路的都城」展覽（1993–1994）的唐代銅鏡（編號 33）等，僅舉數例。

雖然目前尚未見到任何一件在器形與裝飾上與本器完全相同的例子，但此注子仍可歸屬於一個數量極為有限、且同樣以貼花裝飾為特徵的「鳥首形注器」群組。在本器之上，鳥首已被高度簡化，僅於把手對側保留一枚細小的「喙」形突起。因此，華麗而戲劇性的裝飾語彙，得以與沉靜、結構清晰的器形取得高度平衡。

鷹首壺：東京國立、L. Wannieck（Eskenazi）、麻生收藏

目前已知另有五件相關注器，其形制均較本器更為複雜：口部呈球形，並具明確的鳥首形流；把手作植物莖葉狀；器足則多見斜削足緣或外緣凸稜。其中一件貼飾與本器相同的大型四瓣花形與花苞形貼花，現藏於東京國立博物館，見 Satō Masahiko 與 Hasebe Gakuji（編），《世界陶磁全集》第十一卷〈隋唐〉（東京，1976），彩圖版 200（圖 2）；另有一件以花苞形貼花結合圓形飾片者，為麻生家族收藏，同書彩圖版 199；其餘三件則使用不同貼花組合，並於肩部環繞蓮瓣紋帶：其一藏於神戶白鶴美術館（同書彩圖版 35）；其一曾遞藏於巴黎 L. Wannieck、比利時 Jan Pincket 以及日本私人收藏，刊於同書圖版 117，並曾納入 Eskenazi（倫敦）1972 年「Early Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art」開幕展（圖錄編號 32，並刊於封面），近年於 2015 年 5 月 13 日在倫敦拍場以第 104 號拍品成交（£2,725,000）（圖 3）；最後一件則刊於 Mizuno Seiji 編，《陶器全集》第 25 卷〈唐三彩〉（東京，1961），彩圖版 1。

鳥首形注器在六朝時期（220–589）即已流行，其「喙」部有時作為實際出水的功能性流嘴，有時僅具純粹裝飾意義，然而此類器物的真正內涵與象徵意義，至今仍未獲充分釐清。

本器另一項值得注意之處，在於其三彩釉色幾乎通體覆施，而非如多數唐代陶器般於足部以上即止、露出未施釉胎體。雖未見形制與裝飾同等複雜之完整出土實例，但在河南鞏義黃冶唐三彩窯址——目前研究最為深入、但或非唯一的重要唐代三彩生產中心——已發現若干施三彩釉並附貼花裝飾的陶片，可資對照（參見《黃冶唐三彩窯》，北京，2000 年，相關頁次；彩圖版 54：4）。

FAQ｜唐代鳥首形三彩注器

Frequently Asked Questions: Tang Dynasty Bird’s-Head Sancai Ewers

Q1｜什麼是「鳥首形注器」？

What is a “bird’s-head ewer”?

中文「鳥首形注器」是指在器物結構中引入鳥類頭部或喙部元素的注水器。鳥首有時構成實際的出水流口，有時則僅作為象徵性或裝飾性構件，位置多設於把手對側，以形成視覺與結構上的平衡。

EnglishA bird’s-head ewer is a pouring vessel incorporating a bird’s head or beak as part of its design. In some examples, the beak functions as a spout; in others, it serves a purely decorative or symbolic role, typically positioned opposite the handle to balance the vessel visually and structurally.

Q2｜鳥首形注器最早出現於何時？

When did bird’s-head ewers first appear?

中文此類器形在六朝時期（220–589）已相當流行，早於唐代。唐代作品可視為在既有型式基礎上的深化與高度裝飾化發展。

EnglishBird’s-head ewers became popular during the Six Dynasties period (220–589), predating the Tang dynasty. Tang examples represent a further development and elaboration of an established form.

Q3｜本件唐三彩注器的「鳥首」有何特殊之處？

What is distinctive about the bird’s head on this Tang sancai ewer?

中文與多數鳥首注器不同，本器的鳥首被高度簡化，僅保留為把手對側的一枚細小「喙」形突起。這種處理方式，使器物得以在繁複華麗的貼花裝飾與沉靜、清晰的器形結構之間，取得高度平衡。

EnglishUnlike most bird’s-head ewers, the bird’s head on this vessel is reduced to a minute beak opposite the handle. This restraint allows the dramatic appliqué decoration to be balanced by a serene and clearly structured overall form.

Q4｜唐代是否存在多件相同或近似的鳥首形三彩注器？

Are there other closely related Tang bird’s-head sancai ewers?

中文目前未見在器形與裝飾上與本器完全相同的實例。但已知另有五件相關注器，形制更為複雜，常見特徵包括球形口部、明確的鳥首流口、植物形把手，以及帶斜削或凸稜的器足。

EnglishNo other vessel identical in both form and decoration is known. However, five related ewers are documented, all more complex in shape, typically featuring a globular mouth with a distinct bird’s-head spout, a foliate handle, and a foot with an angled edge or raised ridge.

Q5｜鳥首形注器的用途與象徵意義是否已被充分理解？

Is the function or symbolism of bird’s-head ewers fully understood?

中文尚未。即使在六朝與唐代，鳥首形注器的實際用途與象徵意涵仍未有定論。有些例子顯示其具備實用倒注功能，但另一些則顯然更偏向視覺或象徵層面的造型表達。

EnglishNo. Even today, the precise function and symbolic meaning of bird’s-head ewers remain unclear. Some examples were clearly functional pouring vessels, while others appear primarily decorative or symbolic.

Q6｜為何鳥首形注器在唐代顯得尤為重要？

Why are bird’s-head ewers significant in the Tang dynasty context?

中文唐代的鳥首形注器，特別是三彩貼花作品，結合了外來造型語彙、金屬器審美的轉化，以及高度成熟的陶瓷技術，反映出唐代宮廷文化的國際性與對奢華器物的追求。

EnglishIn the Tang dynasty, bird’s-head ewers—especially sancai examples with appliqué decoration—combine foreign design influences, metalwork-inspired aesthetics, and advanced ceramic techniques, reflecting the cosmopolitan and opulent nature of the Tang court.

Q7｜本件作品在鳥首形注器體系中的位置為何？

How does this vessel fit within the typology of bird’s-head ewers?

中文本器可視為鳥首形注器發展脈絡中極為罕見的一支：在保留型式暗示的同時，刻意弱化鳥首本身，將視覺重心轉移至整體結構與貼花裝飾的完成度之上。

EnglishThis vessel represents a rare variant within the bird’s-head ewer tradition, retaining only a minimal reference to the bird’s head while shifting visual emphasis to overall form and the refinement of appliqué decoration.

Chinese Art Through The Eye Of Sakamoto Gorō: Early Chinese Art

13 September 2016 • New York

Sale Total: 2,501,500 USD

Sale Number: N09584

Lot 6

A MAGNIFICENT SANCAI-GLAZED EWER TANG DYNASTY

Estimate

500,000 - 700,000 USD

Sold

874,000 USD

Description

pottery

finely potted, the ovoid body rising from a widely splayed foot to a double-waisted neck and tall cylindrical cupped mouth secured to the shoulder by a rope-twist handle, the body applied with crisply molded elements of quatrefoil leaf panels separated by florets, trefoil floral sprigs and festooned flower heads, all below a band of three incised grooves at the shoulder with four further trefoil floral sprigs pendent between flanking loop handles and an upright 'beak', all beneath brilliant splashed ivory, green and amber glazes, pooling at the foot to an olive-green tone and extending partially over the underside of the foot, stopping unevenly to reveal the buff body at the base, the interior of the mouth applied with a soft greenish-white glaze, Japanese wood box (3)

Provenance

Christie's London, 12th October 1970, lot 95.

Literature

Gakuji Hasebe and Seizo Hayashiya, Chugoku Kotoji / Chinese Ceramics, vol. 1, Tokyo, 1971, pl. 45.

Anthony du Boulay, Christie's Pictorial History of Chinese Ceramics, London, 1984, p. 21, fig. 3.

Condition

In exceptional general condition given the complexity of the form, with only several shallow chips. The largest measuring 1.3 cm by 0.9 cm, to one tip of the molded quatrefoil florets, as visible in the catalogue image. One small chip to the tip of the 'spout' and another to the underside of the cupped mouth. Several minor shallow losses elsewhere. The base with a small TL drill hole, and several firing imperfections, and a 1.2 cm by 0.9 cm shallow chip. Other light ware and minor glaze flaking as consistent with the period.

Catalogue Note

Opulent Foliage in Three Colors

Regina Krahl

This flamboyant vessel encapsulates the international spirit and the opulent atmosphere at the Chinese court in the first half of the Tang dynasty (618-907), which made that period one of the most splendid periods of Chinese history. Although this piece is unique, in workmanship, form, decoration and coloration, it represents the greatest achievements of Tang pottery.

The long and dangerous overland route across the Taklamakan desert from the capital Chang’an, modern Xi’an, to Central Asia and the Middle East known as the Silk Road linked the heart of China to distant cultural spheres and enabled a flourishing exchange of goods and ideas. Chang’an was an international metropolis without par, the largest city on earth, with an estimated population of one million inhabitants that included sizeable communities of foreign residents from all over Asia. Foreign merchants offered foreign goods in the city’s exotic Western market, and foreign embassies brought foreign artefacts to the court. China’s craftsmen thus came into contact with an abundance of styles and techniques, which they quickly had to adopt in this competitive climate.

The first half of the Tang dynasty saw an unprecedented rise in the ingenuity and skills of the country’s artisans who strove to meet the rising demands of an affluent and discerning aristocracy. In no other period of China’s long history did its potters understand so successfully to create luxury items out of mere clay, as this striking ewer exemplifies. Superbly designed and exactingly executed, it is an object with a dramatic impact. Its crisp profile is composed of a daring combination of cylindrical, convex and concave outlines. Its sprig-moulded floral and foliate appliques, freely modelled rope-twist handle and well applied, splashed sancai glazes, document the potters’ intention to create a masterpiece, embellished as lavishly as possible.

The application of sprig-moulded reliefs on ceramics evokes the encrustation of precious metal objects with jewels and pearls; compare a Tang bejewelled gold sarira container excavated from the remains of Qingshan Temple in Lintong county, Shaanxi province, illustrated in Zhongguo meishu quanji. Gongyi meishu bian [Complete series on Chinese art: Arts and crafts section], vol. 10, Beijing, 1987, pl. 76, and in Sui Tang wenhua [Sui and Tang culture], Hong Kong, 1990, p. 275, pl. 5. The technique which became popular on ceramics in the Northern Qi period (550-577) period, when Central Asian styles began to exert a strong influence on Chinese crafts, has been discussed by Suzanne G. Valenstein in relation to an earlier green-glazed jar with such decoration in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (“Preliminary Findings on a 6^th-Century Earthenware Jar”, Oriental Art, vol. VLIII, no. 4, 1997/8, pp. 2-13).

The arabesque shapes are reminiscent of the jewellery worn by Buddhist deities; compare, for example, the jewellery adorning the famous white marble torso of Avalokitesvara excavated in Xi’an, illustrated in Zhongguo meishu quanji. Diaosu bian [Complete series on Chinese Art: Sculpture section], vol. 4, Beijing, 1988, pl. 53 (fig. 1).

Such fanciful floral and foliate palmette motifs are ubiquitous on early Tang dynasty works of art and appear in a multitude of different versions on artefacts of various media; see, for example, the trappings of a Tang pottery horse excavated in Gongxian, Henan province, ibid., pl. 156; the painted decoration on the armor of a Tang wooden guardian figure excavated from a tomb dated in accordance with AD 688 in Astana, Turfan, Xinjiang, included in the exhibition China. Dawn of a Golden Age, 200-750 AD, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2004-5, cat. no. 180; similar decoration on a bronze guardian figure from Baoji, Shaanxi province, ibid., cat. no. 230; designs on pieces of woven silk, again from Astana, one of the late 6th/early 7th century, another from a tomb dated in accordance with AD 778, ibid., cat. nos 235 and 242; on an embroidered silk saddle blanket from Reshui, Dulan, Qinghai province, ibid., cat. no. 247; or on a Tang bronze mirror from Qishan county, Shaanxi province, included in the exhibition Treasures of Chang’an. Capital of the Silk Road, Hong Kong Museum of Art, Hong Kong, 1993-4, cat. no. 33, to name only a few examples.

Although no other vessel of this form and decoration appears to exist, this ewer belongs to an extremely small group of spectacular bird’s-head vessels decorated in this way with appliques. On the present ewer the bird’s head is reduced to a minute ‘beak’ opposite the handle. The dramatic nature of the ornate designs is thus particularly well balanced by the serene, clearly structured shape of the vessel.

Five related ewers are known, all more complex in shape, with a globular mouth with distinct bird’s-head spout, a foliate stalk as handle, and the foot with an angled edge or raised ridge: one with the same large quatrefoil and bud-shaped appliques, in the Tokyo National Museum, is illustrated in Satō Masahiko and Hasebe Gakuji, eds, Sekai tōji zenshū/Ceramic Art of the World, vol. 11: Sui Tō/Sui and T'ang Dynasties, Tokyo, 1976, col. pl. 200 (fig. 2); one with the same bud-shaped appliques combined with roundels, in the Aso collection, ibid., col. pl. 199; and three with different appliques and a band of lotus petals around the shoulder, one in the Hakutsuru Art Museum, Kobe, ibid., col. pl. 35; one from the collections of L. Wannieck, Paris, Jan Pincket, Belgium, and a Japanese private collection, ibid., pl. 117, included in the Inaugural Exhibition: Early Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Eskenazi, London, 1972, cat. no. 32, illustrated on the cover, and recently sold in our London rooms, 13th May 2015, lot 104 (£ 2,725,000) (fig. 3); and the last published in Mizuno Seiji, Tōki zenshū [Complete works on ceramics], vol. 25: Tō sansai [Tang three-colour], Tokyo, 1961, col. pl. 1. Bird’s-head ewers, with the beak sometimes forming a functional spout, sometimes representing a purely decorative feature, became popular in the Six Dynasties’ period (220-589), but their significance is still not understood.

The present vessel is also remarkable for the evenly applied sancai glazes, which fully cover the vessel rather than stopping in an uneven line well above the base and thus revealing the unglazed body, as is more common on Tang pottery vessels. Related ceramics with sancai glazes and applied designs – but apparently no vessel of this complex shape or elaborate decoration – have been excavated at the Gongxian kilns at Huangye in Gongyi, Henan province, the best researched, but probably not the only major sancai pottery kiln site of the Tang dynasty; see Huangye Tang sancai yao/Three-colour Glazed Pottery Kilns of the Tang Dynasty at Huangye, Beijing, 2000, passim, and col. pl. 54: 4 for a sancai pottery fragment with a related foliate applique.