“Chinese Hung Chung” Silver Ceremonial Bowl Kwong Man Shing, Hong Kong Late 19th–Early 20th Century Silver with engraved and repoussé decoration This important Chinese export silver ceremonial bowl represents a remarkable example of late Qing to early Republican-period silverwork produced for the international market. The deep bowl rises above an elaborate pedestal supported by three upright dragons whose scaled bodies ascend to uphold the vessel above, creating a structure that is both architecturally complex and visually imposing. Dragons and solar imagery appear throughout the object, decorating the interior, exterior, neck, base, and even the concealed underside of the foot. At the center of the bowl, a large dragon pursues a radiant solar disc, echoed by a corresponding dragon motif on the exterior wall. Additional dragons appear on the neck, pedestal, and supporting structure below. Together these elements form a complete nine-dragon program, uniting the vessel into a coherent symbolic composition. The use of nine dragons is highly significant. In traditional Chinese political and visual culture, the dragon symbolized heavenly authority, imperial power, and cosmic order, while the number nine represented the ultimate yang number and became closely associated with the emperor. Since the phrase “jiu wu zhi zun” (“the supreme dignity of the Nine-Five”) emerged from the Yijing (Book of Changes), nine-dragon imagery has been regarded as one of the most potent symbols of imperial authority. Although produced as an export silver object, the present bowl adopts a distinctly courtly visual language, elevating it beyond a decorative luxury object into something closer to a ceremonial vessel imbued with symbolic and political meaning. The great dragon within the bowl dominates the central field, while the three dragons below physically support the vessel, creating a powerful sense of monumentality and ritual presence. Particularly noteworthy is the vessel’s sophisticated arrangement of its nine-dragon iconography. Eight dragons are readily visible across the bowl, pedestal, and exterior surfaces, while the ninth dragon is concealed within the recessed underside of the foot and remains invisible during normal display. This deliberate “visible eight, hidden ninth” arrangement closely parallels the design of Qing imperial dragon robes. Comparable compositions may be found in imperial robes preserved in the Palace Museum in Beijing, the Denver Art Museum, and the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. The Qing nine-dragon robe offered elsewhere in the present sale as Lot 4110 likewise follows the same visual system. By concealing the ninth dragon from immediate view, the designer completed the auspicious imperial total of nine while simultaneously reinforcing ideas of imperial status, heavenly mandate, and supreme authority. The repeated dragon-and-solar-disc imagery further strengthens these associations, creating a remarkably coherent program of imperial symbolism. The underside bears Chinese character marks together with the English initials “KMS,” identifying the maker as Kwong Man Shing, one of the leading Chinese export silver workshops active in Hong Kong during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Historical records place the firm at 24 Queen’s Road, Hong Kong, with possible connections to Canton trade networks as well. The workshop appears to have been active from approximately 1875 to 1925, during the height of Chinese export silver production in treaty-port cities such as Hong Kong, Canton, and Shanghai. During this period, Chinese silversmiths adapted Western forms while incorporating traditional Chinese decorative vocabularies, producing tea services, trophies, presentation bowls, boxes, ceremonial wares, and luxury objects for overseas markets. Dragon imagery proved especially attractive to Western collectors, who increasingly viewed the dragon as the quintessential emblem of China itself. The significance of the present bowl may also be understood within the broader history of Chinese art and material culture displayed in the United States. The 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia marked one of the earliest large-scale public presentations of Chinese culture in America. Chinese displays included porcelains, silks, lacquerwares, jades, ivories, paintings, furniture, and luxury handicrafts, presenting American audiences with an image of China defined by refined craftsmanship, ornament, and hand production rather than industrial machinery. At a moment when the United States celebrated technological progress and industrial modernity, many Americans simultaneously developed a fascination with the artistry, patience, and sophistication embodied in traditional Chinese craftsmanship. Chinese export silver workshops such as Kwong Man Shing participated directly in this international process of cultural exchange. Their works were not merely luxury goods, but carefully crafted embodiments of an exportable Chinese identity. Through imperial dragon imagery, elaborate repoussé decoration, and references to courtly visual traditions, objects such as the present bowl projected a vision of China that appealed strongly to Western collectors during the age of world expositions and global trade. The present nine-dragon ceremonial bowl thus stands not merely as an outstanding example of Chinese export silver, but as a material expression of how late Qing China represented itself abroad. Integrating nine dragons, concealed imagery, solar symbolism, and richly modeled relief decoration into a single object, it transforms imperial iconography into a work intended for an international audience. Particularly significant is its close relationship to the Qing nine-dragon robe offered in the present sale as Lot 4110. Though differing in medium and function, both objects share the same imperial visual system of nine dragons and the deliberate “visible eight, hidden ninth” arrangement, demonstrating how symbols of imperial authority extended beyond court costume into the broader artistic production of late Qing China. Height 13 7/8 x Diameter 10 1/4 inches (34.8 x 25.4 cm) ???????????????? ????????????? ?????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????“??”??????????????????????????“??????????????”????“?????”??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????“?????”??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Lot 4110 ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????“?”?????“KMS”????????????????????Kwong Man Shing?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????1875?1925???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????“??”??????????? ????????????????????????????????????1876???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????“????”??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????“????”?????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????“????”??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? Lot 4110 ???????????????“???”?“?????”???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ???? 13 7/8 ????? 10 1/4 ???34.8 × 25.4 ???Condition: Heavily tarnished, surface wear, scratches, discoloration. For condition report, please contact the Asian Art Department.

Heavily tarnished, surface wear, scratches, discoloration.For condition report, please contact the Asian Art Department.