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Li (亯聿鬲)
Late Shang to Early Western Zhou Dynasty, 12th-11th century BC
Inscription: 亯聿
Height: 17cm
Provenance:
Collection of Jung Hou (1874-1945)
Collection of Sir Michael Oppenheimer (1924-2020) and Mrs. Helen Oppenheimer (1926-2022)
Dating to the late Shang–early Western Zhou period, this bronze li-shaped vessel features a flared mouth, tall constricted neck with taotie band and traces of black lacquer, thin rim with upright handles, and a pouch-shaped belly tapering into three columnar legs. The surface is adorned with leiwen motifs, and the interior bears the inscription “亯聿 (Xiang Yu)”. Standing 17 cm high, it exemplifies the transitional form between ding and li types and reflects refined craftsmanship. The vessel was formerly in the collection of Rong Hou (1874–1945), Manchu noble and first president of the Central Bank of Manchukuo, and was published in Umehara Sueji’s Kanka Rō Kichintō (1947), a seminal catalogue prefaced by Luo Zhenyu documenting 169 bronzes from Rong Hou’s renowned collection.
Inscription: 亯聿
Height: 17cm
Provenance:
Collection of Jung Hou (1874-1945)
Collection of Sir Michael Oppenheimer (1924-2020) and Mrs. Helen Oppenheimer (1926-2022)
Dating to the late Shang–early Western Zhou period, this bronze li-shaped vessel features a flared mouth, tall constricted neck with taotie band and traces of black lacquer, thin rim with upright handles, and a pouch-shaped belly tapering into three columnar legs. The surface is adorned with leiwen motifs, and the interior bears the inscription “亯聿 (Xiang Yu)”. Standing 17 cm high, it exemplifies the transitional form between ding and li types and reflects refined craftsmanship. The vessel was formerly in the collection of Rong Hou (1874–1945), Manchu noble and first president of the Central Bank of Manchukuo, and was published in Umehara Sueji’s Kanka Rō Kichintō (1947), a seminal catalogue prefaced by Luo Zhenyu documenting 169 bronzes from Rong Hou’s renowned collection.
