A MASSIVE POTTERY FIGURE OF A CAMEL AND RIDER, TANG DYNASTY China, 618-907. The large camel is modeled with its head slightly turned to the left, protruding eyes, flaring nostrils and ears lying against its neck, its mouth held wide open with the tongue in the center. A detachable saddle bag hangs between its humps and is surmounted by a bearded Turk or Sogdian rider, wearing a distinctively pointed hat, with both arms raised to hold the reins. Provenance: A Dutch private collection. Galerie Zacke, Vienna, January 22nd, 2004. Dr. Mons Fischer, acquired from the above for EUR €17,000. A copy of the invoice from Galerie Zacke, Vienna, January 22nd, 2004, is accompanying this lot. A seasoned private collector of modern and contemporary art, Dr. Mons Fischer has also acquired fine Chinese works of art since the 1980s, eventually building one of the most important collections of its kind in Austria. Condition: Some repair and touchups as generally expected from Tang dynasty excavations. Losses, fissures and encrustations. Four drilled holes from sample-taking. Overall very good condition. Scientific Report: A thermoluminescence analysis report issued by Oxford Authentication on February 11th, 2020, based on sample number C120a54, sets the firing date of three of the samples taken at 900 - 1500 years ago. A copy of the report, issued by Oxford Authentication, is accompanying this lot. Weight: 16.2 kg Dimensions: Height 68 cm This camel and rider belong to a group of Tang pottery that are remarkably realistic as each model appears to be unique. Figures of foreigners, perhaps a Turk or Sogdian, are generally used in such groupings of Tang pottery and reflects the prosperity of Tang China, one of the greatest empires in the medieval world, marked by successful diplomatic relationships and economic expansion along the silk roads. Literature comparison: A related large painted pottery group of camel and foreign rider, dressed in a fur coat and wearing a large pointed hat, excavated from the tomb of Wang Chen (buried 679), Changzhi, Shaanxi province in 1954 and now in the Museum of Chinese History, Beijing, is illustrated by Li Jian (ed.), The Glory of the Silk Road, Art from Ancient China, The Dayton Art Institute, 2003, p. 170, pl. 85. Another related pottery figure of a Bactrian camel and rider from the The Chinhuatang Collection, was sold at Christie's Hong Kong, Important Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, 29 November 2017, lot 2919. Auction result comparison: Compare with a closely related camel and rider at Christies London in Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, 5 November 2019, lot 4, sold for GBP £75,000. 胡人騎駱駝陶俑，唐代 中國，618-907。大型駱駝的頭部略微向左傾斜，眼睛突出，鼻孔張開，耳朵呈喇叭形，嘴巴張開，舌頭居中。 一個可拆卸的馬鞍袋懸掛在其駝峰之間，上面坐著留著鬍子的突厥或粟特騎手搭，戴著一副特徵明顯的帽子，舉起雙手握住繮繩。 來源：一個荷蘭私人老收藏。維也納Zacke藝廊，2004年1月22日。Dr. Mons Fischer購於上述藝廊，成交價EUR €17.000。隨附發票複印件。Dr. Mons Fischer是一位經驗豐富的現代和當代藝術私人收藏家，從1980年代開始收藏中國藝術品，最終在奧地利建立了此類藏品最重要的收藏之一。 品相：唐朝考古中普遍出現的一些修補和修整。 缺損、裂縫和結殼。 測試所需的樣品採集產生的三個鑽孔。總體狀況很好。 隨附牛津熱釋光測試檢測證書拷貝 重量：16.2 公斤 尺寸：高68厘米 拍賣結果比較：一件相近的胡人駱駝陶俑2019年11月5日倫敦佳士得《中國陶瓷和工藝品》拍號4，成交價 GBP £75.000。