234. IMPORTANTE STATUE DE WENCHANG EN BRONZE PARTIELLEMENT DORÉ Dynastie Ming A LARGE PARCEL-GILT BRONZE FIGURE OF WENCHANG Ming Dynasty Seated, with his hands gathered in front of his chest holding a tablet, dressed in long, layered robes tied with fluttering sashes, the hems incised with five-clawed dragons, his face serene with a hint of a smile, his long beard divided into three long strands, wearing an ornament on his head resembling a crown, decorated with a three-peaked mountain flanked by the sun and the moon, the face, neck and hands gilt. 80cm (31 1/2in) high. 明 局部鎏金銅文昌帝君坐像 Provenance: Collection of Dr. Emil Heintges (1862-1947), German Consul in Guangzhou in 1904, in Yingkou in 1907, in Shenyang 1907-1913, in Hankou and Shanghai in 1914 Collection of Gunter Schmid, Stuttgart Nagel, Stuttgart, 14 November 1999, lot 2462 來源： 德國領事Emil Heintges博士（1862-1947）珍藏，於1904年駐廣州、1907年駐銀口、1907至1913年駐瀋陽、1914年駐漢口及上海 斯圖加特Gunter Schmid珍藏 納高拍賣行，斯圖加特，1999年11月14日，編號2462 Notable for its impressive size, this large figure is finely cast with great attention to detail such as the fine borders of the figure's robes which are embellished with five-clawed striding dragons, and the fluttering sashes at the hem. The figure may be identified as Wenchang Wang, also known as Wenchang dijun, the Daoist god of Culture and Literature, more commonly depicted holding a ruyi-sceptre. Most indicative of his important position in the Daoist canon is a motif on his head ornament resembling a crown which is decorated with a three-peaked mountain flanked by the sun and moon. Stephen Little suggests such head-dresses worn by these deities distinguished their places in the celestial hierarchy, see Stephen Little, Daoism and the Arts of China, Chicago, 2000, p.248. A similar hat is also worn by a figure representing one of the Three Purities, carved in high relief at the eight cave-temples at Long Shan in Shanxi province and attributed to the fourteenth century, illustrated ibid., p. 27, fig. 9. A related massive bronze figure measuring 8 feet in height, was sold in Sotheby's New York, 23 and 24 May 1974, lot 147. A large gilt-bronze figure of Wenchang Wang was sold at Christie's New York, 3 June 1993, lot 562. Compare also with a large lacquer-gilt bronze figure of Wenchang Wang, sold at Sotheby's New York, 27 March 2003, lot 15.