A Japanese bronze flower vase, 18th/19th century.
The bronze vase of archaistic form, the compressed body raised on a spreading circular foot and rising through a tall, gently tapering neck to a cylindrical mouth. The neck is flanked by a pair of elegant high-arched handles, each issuing from the mouth of a finely modelled dragon head and curving elegantly downwards towards the shoulder. The upper neck is encircled by a broad register cast in relief with stylised archaic motifs, including angular scrollwork and geometric ornament. The body is embellished with finely worked archaistic designs of flame against a leiwen-ground, arranged in three leaf-shaped panels, contrasting with the otherwise undecorated surface of the vessel.
The bronze has a rich, lustrous dark reddish-brown patina, with darker tones and areas of natural wear highlighting the relief decoration. This vase reflects the strong Japanese interest in Chinese antiquity and the revival and reinterpretation of archaic Chinese bronze forms.
Height 22 cm, diameter 9.5 cm.
Provenance:
From a private collection in the U.K.
Inv. No: MW402
