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Scientific Analysis Report: The result of a radiocarbon dating test (C14) conducted by Re. S. Artes, no. R 146195A-2, 28 July 2026, based on one sample taken from the foot rim, is consistent with the dating of this lot. The report states three intervals of dates, namely 650-545 BC with a probability of 56.9 %, 696-662 with a probability of (18.3%), and 776-734 BC with a probability of 20.2 %. Thus, the combined probability for a date between 776-545 BC is 95.4 %.
Expert’s note:
This magnificent pair of lacquered wood bianhu represents a discovery of exceptional importance. Radiocarbon analysis dates the wood to 776–545 BC, placing the vessels at the formative beginning of the bianhu tradition in the Spring and Autumn period. Bronze bianhu are securely documented at this date, yet the surviving corpus of lacquered-wood examples otherwise belongs to the Warring States, Qin, and Han dynasties. On current evidence, the present vessels are therefore the earliest known lacquered-wood bianhu, preserving an exceptionally early iteration of a form that became one of the most distinctive vessel types of China.
Their decoration is no less remarkable. Phoenixes and coiling dragon-serpents surround a near-nude heroic figure who strides into their coils and grasps one of the creatures with outstretched arms, transforming each broad side into a continuous mythological drama. The closest later parallel appears on Lady Dai’s red-ground painted coffin from Tomb 1 at Mawangdui, where an immortal likewise clings to a dragon while a phoenix spreads its wings nearby. Predating the Mawangdui coffin by several centuries, the present pair preserves an ancestral formulation of imagery that would become central to Chu-Han visions of immortality and the afterlife.
China, 770-476 BC. Finely carved, the oblong body supported on a rectangular foot and surmounted by a flaring rectangular neck, the wide sides superbly painted in ochre, red, green, brown, yellow, and gilt on a black lacquered ground to depict a heroic immortal wrestling with a ferocious dragon, its sinuous body framing a phoenix, detailed with alternating green and pale brown scales, clawed feet, and emanating fire. The narrow sides decorated with archaic bands and fitted with bronze taotie-masks suspending loose ring handles. The neck and foot similarly decorated with archaic scrolls, as is the single remaining cover. (3)
Provenance: From the private collection of A. Hansen, Denmark. Mr. Hansen (b. 1955) is a retired Danish Supreme Court lawyer and lifelong collector with a deep passion for history and culture. His collecting journey began at the age of eight with stamps, encouraged by his father, and quickly developed into a serious pursuit. By 1982, his specialized collection of Greenland postal history earned international recognition. Following this success, Mr. Hansen turned his focus to fine art and antiquities, beginning with Danish art and later expanding into East and Southeast Asian artifacts after an inspiring Japanese exhibition in 1985. Over the following decades, his collection grew to include mostly ceramic artworks from Annam, Khmer, Burmese, and Thai origins, acquired through reputable collectors and auction houses.
Condition: Good condition with expected wear, manufacturing irregularities, warping, age cracks, flaking to lacquer, the bronze handles reattached with associated minor old fills, one cover lost, all as expected from authentic Han dynasty lacquer ware. Possibly some touchups. The foot with a small hole from sample-taking, now filled.
Weight: 2 kg (each)
Dimensions: Width 40.3 cm and 40.6 cm
Fun Fact!
With his bare torso, short loincloth, widely braced legs and arms extended against a coiling dragon-serpent, the heroic figure on these vessels finds a striking counterpart in Heracles, the supreme monster-slayer of Greek mythology. The multiple serpentine creatures recall Heracles’ combat with the Hydra, while the closest visual parallel appears in Archaic Greek representations of Heracles wrestling Triton, where the hero locks his entire body against the sea god’s long, twisting tail. A particularly compelling example is the black-figure hydria dated to about 540–530 BC—almost exactly contemporary with the end of the present vessels’ radiocarbon range—in the Toledo Museum of Art, object number 1956.69. Both compositions draw their extraordinary power from the same elemental confrontation: the exposed human body pitted against the coiling strength of a mythological beast, transforming physical struggle into an enduring image of heroic mastery.
Literature comparison:
Compare a related black and red lacquered vessel of similar form depicting an ox, horse, and bird, dated to the Qin dynasty, 24.2 cm long, unearthed from Tomb no. 44 at Shuihudi, Yunmeng, in 1978, and now in the Hubei Provincial Museum. Compare a related lacquered wood bianhu of similar size, dated to the Warring States period, 42 cm high, excavated in 2002 from Jiuliandun Tomb 1, Zaoyang, Hubei. Compare a related lacquered wood wine vessel, 29.6 cm wide, dated mid- to late Warring States period, excavated from Tomb No. 2 at Jiuliandun and now in the Hubei Provincial Museum. Compare also the well-known Western Han example excavated in 1975 from Fenghuangshan Tomb 168 at Jiangling and now in the Jingzhou Museum.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Bonhams Hong Kong, 30 November 2022, lot 104
Mid-Estimate: HKD 550,000 or approx. EUR 65,500 (for one) converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An inscribed and painted lacquer wine ‘ear’ cup, Warring States period-early Western Han dynasty
Expert remark: Compare the related decoration and motifs. Note the much smaller size (19.5 cm) and later dating.
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