Juliette Hammer
Sale Coordinator
Lot 26
A RARE CARVED BAMBOO 'LOTUS POND' BRUSHPOT, BITONG 18th century
14 May 2025, 10:00 BST
London, New Bond Street£5,000 - £8,000
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Chen Xie
Specialist
Edward Luper
Specialist, Chinese Works of Art
Lazarus Halstead
Head of Chinese and Asian Art, London
A RARE CARVED BAMBOO 'LOTUS POND' BRUSHPOT, BITONG
18th century
Raised on three shallow feet, carved in high relief around the exterior with a continuous scene depicting a densely flowering lotus pond, with tall lotus stems, broad fanned out lotus leaves and reeds emerging from swirling waters, an egret wading amongst the stems and a crab resting upon one of the open leaves, with horn inlaid eyes.
15.5cm (6 1/8in) high.
Raised on three shallow feet, carved in high relief around the exterior with a continuous scene depicting a densely flowering lotus pond, with tall lotus stems, broad fanned out lotus leaves and reeds emerging from swirling waters, an egret wading amongst the stems and a crab resting upon one of the open leaves, with horn inlaid eyes.
15.5cm (6 1/8in) high.
Footnotes
十八世紀 竹雕「一路連科」圖筆筒
The lotus pond, with its blossoms rising serenely from the murky depths, embodies the ideals the Song dynasty scholar Zhou Dunyi (1017-1073) extolled in 'On Loving the Lotus'. In his essay, he praises the flower as a symbol of purity and moral integrity—untouched by the mud from which it grows, much like the ideal scholar who remains virtuous amid worldly corruption. Drifting upon the water's surface, the lotus stands in quiet elegance, its fragrance subtle yet enduring, a reminder that true refinement and wisdom flourish not in seclusion but amidst the trials of life. A similar style of carving of lotus but on a bamboo perfume holder, 18th century, in the Hong Kong Museum of Art, is illustrated by Ip Yee and L.C.S.Tam, Chinese Bamboo Carving, vol.II, Hong Kong, 1982, pp.268-269, no.80.
See also a related carved bamboo lotus pond brushpot, mid-Qing dynasty, illustrated in Classics of the Forbidden City: Scholar's Paraphernalia, Beijing, 2009, no.49.