A BRONZE RITUAL WINE VESSEL, ZHI, LATE SHANG TO EARLY WESTERN ZHOU DYNASTY China, 11th century BC. The pear-shaped body rising from a tall spreading foot, finely cast with a kui-dragon band divided by a central flange against a leiwen ground, repeated on the foot. Provenance: James J. Lally & Co., New York. Roger Keverne, acquired from the above. Roger Keverne served as the Chairman of Asian Art in London and as the President of BADA. He began his 50-year career with Spink & Son, rising to head the Asian department by the age of only 28. He left Spink in 1992 to start his own gallery together with Miranda Clarke, his wife and business partner, in Mayfair, London, which eventually closed its doors in June 2020. Published: Roger Keverne, Fine and Rare Chinese Works of Art and Ceramics - Winter Exhibition, London, 2012, no. 2, pp. 8. Condition: Excellent condition. Extensive wear, few small nicks, traces of corrosion. Superb, naturally grown patina, with extensive malachite encrustations with areas of azurite and cuprite. Weight: 470.9 g Dimensions: Height 12.8 cm Zhi vessels such as the present example were used as drinking cups in important ritual performances aimed at paying homage to the ancestors. According to Chinese beliefs, ancestors were deemed active participants in the life of their living offspring, which they could positively influence if provided with the correct necessities for their own afterlife. See J. Rawson, The Power of Images: The Model Universe of the First Emperor and its Legacy, in Historical Research, no. 75, 2002, pp. 123-154. Literature comparison: Compare a closely related zhi, dated late 11th century BC, in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 24.72.14. Auction result comparison: Compare a related zhi, dated to the 11th century BC, with similar decorative bands, at Christie's New York, in Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, on 14 September 2018, lot 1103, sold for USD 37,500. 商末至西周青銅酒器觶 中國，公元前十一世紀。小瓶形狀，圓腹，侈口，高圈足。頸部和圈足修飾雷紋地夔龍紋帶。 來源：James J. Lally & Co., New York. Roger Keverne私人收藏，購於上述藝廊。Roger Keverne 曾擔任倫敦亞洲藝術協會主席和 BADA 總裁。 他在 Spink & Son 開始了他 50 年的職業生涯，年僅 28 歲就成為亞洲部門的負責人。他於 1992 年離開 Spink，與他的妻子和商業夥伴 Miranda Clarke 在倫敦Mayfair成立了自己的藝廊 ，最終於 2020 年 6 月關閉。 出版：Roger Keverne, Fine and Rare Chinese Works of Art and Ceramics - Winter Exhibition, London, 2012, no. 2, pp. 8。 品相：狀況極好，大面積磨損，局部小刻痕，腐蝕的痕跡。 極好的自然包漿，大面積孔雀石綠以及藍色和紅色結殼區域。 重量：470.9 克 尺寸：高12.8 厘米 觶是中國古代禮器中的一種，做盛酒用。中國人對於祖先祭拜極爲重視。他們認爲，先人對其生活影響極大。向神靈或祖先行禮，表示崇敬並求保佑。見J. Rawson, The Power of Images: The Model Universe of the First Emperor and its Legacy, in Historical Research, no. 75, 2002, pp. 123-154。 文獻比較：一件相近的觶，公元前十一世紀末，見大都會博物館，編號24.72.14。 拍賣結果比較：一件公元前十一世紀的觶，相似紋飾帶，見紐約佳士得Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art 2018年9月14日 lot 1103, 售價USD 37,500。