A TAIHU ‘DRAGON’ SCHOLAR’S ROCK, LATE QING DYNASTY
China, early 1900s. The porous stone of a distinct grayish-buff color with dark veining providing an attractive contrast, formed with jagged outcrops and protrusions as well as numerous interconnected perforations. Note the obvious zoomorphic qualities evoking a ferocious dragon.


Provenance
: New York trade, acquired from a private estate and formerly in an old Chinese collection. A copy of an old exhibition card, from where this rock was originally acquired by the previous owner, is accompanying this lot.

Condition
: Good condition, commensurate with age, with expected old wear, signs of weathering and erosion, natural fissures, minute nicks, light scratches.

Weight: 13.2 kg (incl. stand), 11.9 kg (excl. stand)
Dimensions: Height 71.3 cm (incl. stand) and 60.4 cm (excl. stand)

With a fitted Hongmu stand from the 20th century, supported on five cabriole legs and finely carved with lingzhi clouds. (2)


This rock is a fine representation of the ‘tou’ quality
, openness or holes, one of the few fundamental qualities prized in a scholar’s rock. This is further explained by Richard Rosenblum in his essay in Robert D. Mowry’s Worlds Within Worlds: The Richard Rosenblum Collection of Scholars’ Rocks, Harvard University Art Museums, 1996, pp. 117-18, where he writes in reference to Taihu rocks, “the holes within holes of these rocks give the experience of infinity” and “varying in size and orientation, these holes create the sensation of an ever-changing and infinite world within a finite object.”


Taihu
or porous stone is a kind of limestone produced at the foot of Dongting Mountain in Suzhou, which is close to Lake Tai. Due to long-term surging by water, this kind of rock features many pores and holes of various depths and sizes.


Auction result comparison:

Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s New York, 18 March 2008, lot 64
Price: USD 25,000 or approx.
EUR 33,000
converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A 'Taihu' scholar's rock: birds flocking among incense clouds, wood stand
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form and color.




清末龍形太湖石

中國，十九世紀初。天然隨形而成，造型奇巧，體態夭矯，如矯健飛龍，妙趣天成。深灰色調，帶有赤褐色的斑塊，泛著白色的紋理。


來源：
紐約古玩交易，購自私人莊園，原為中國古代收藏。該拍品附有一張老展覽的票的副本，該票的前主人最初是從那裡獲得這塊太湖石的。

品相：
狀況良好，有磨損、風化和侵蝕跡象、自然裂縫、微小刻痕、輕微劃痕。

重量：13.2 公斤 (含底座), 11.9 公斤 (不含底座)
尺寸：高71.3 厘米 (含底座) 與 60.4 厘米 (不含底座)

二十世紀的紅木支架，五獸足，精雕細刻如意祥雲。 (2)


拍賣結果比較：

形制：非常相近
拍賣：紐約蘇富比，2008年3月18日，lot 64
價格：USD 25,000（相當於今日
EUR
33,000
）
描述：太湖雲石木底座
專家評論：比較非常相近的外形和顏色。