Provenance:From the collection of an important military family.Note:Known in Chinese as bianzhong, gilt bronze bells were an exclusive and important part of imperial court rituals and ceremonies. In the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), bianzhong were commonly played during ceremonies at the Temple of Heaven and the Temple of Agriculture, as well as during imperial banquets and state rites. Bells of this type were usually assembled in graduate sets of sixteen, producing twelve different musical tones and four repeated tones of a lower octave. Their respective musical notes were determined by their thickness. As depicted in court paintings, bianzhong would have been suspended in two tiers of eight over tall and elaborate wooden frames. Some of these bells were reputed to have left China during the late 19th and early 20th century. A few of these bells, particularly from the Ming dynasty, have resurfaced at auction over the past decade, including an identical gilt-bronze bell sold at Sotheby's Paris, 9th June 2010, lot 43. Another similar sample was sold at Freeman's on 14th March 2015, lot 65.