Lot 169 , An important Chinese inscribed presentation punch bowl, dated 1921, original wood stand

An important Chinese inscribed presentation punch bowl, dated 1921, original wood stand, finely embossed and chased with twin boys holding a fan shaped banner, inscribed in Mandarin with a dedication to RFC Hedgeland, surmounted by a stylised bat, further panels of chrysanthemums, a second Mandarin inscription engraved with the names of the local officials and business people at the presentation, surrounded by peonies and a panel with an owl and other birds, perched on a prunus branch, on a circular spreading foot inscribed ‘presented to RFC Hedgeland Commissioner of Customs Nanning by the Kwangsi Chamber of Commerce 27 April 1921’, diameter 31cm, height 22.5cm, the ebonised wood stand with additional engraved silver presentation inscription panel matching the bowl, stamped maker’s mark TC to base, total height 36.5cm, foot bent

see Historical Photographs of China reference number: He01-227. Photo from an album (UoB reference He01) kept in the School of Oriental and African Studies Archives, London (SOAS reference PP MS 82/13) showing the presentation of this silver bowl and a banner (lot 170) to RFC Hedgeland.

Provenance -
Reginald Hedgeland (1874-1967); thence by family descent.
All the objects in the collection were presented to Chinese Maritime Customs Commissioner Reginald Hedgeland, and date from around 1900 to 1927.
His papers and photographs are deposited in Archives & Special Collections, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. A few of the items of silver and silk banners to be offered by Gorringe's are illustrated in the Reginald Hedgeland photograph archive held at SOAS, University London. The SOAS library site includes the following biography- 
Reginald Follett Codrington Hedgeland was born in Exeter, Devon on 18 December 1874. He joined the Chinese Maritime Customs Service in May 1898, having graduated from Pembroke College, Oxford, the previous year. Hedgeland was one of many foreigners from Europe and America who made up the higher levels of the Customs Service, which was controlled by central Chinese government. Originally established by foreign consuls to collect maritime taxes during the Taiping Rebellion in 1854, it expanded to include other functions such as domestic customs, postal services, and waterway and harbour management, and it was involved in politics and diplomacy. Hedgeland’s long career in China, which saw him retire with the rank of Commissioner in 1930, took him to many ports. His first posting was to Hoihow [Haikou], a port on the mouth of the Nandu River on the island of Hainan in the south. Later posts included Nanking [Nanjing], Tientsin [Tainjin], Macau, Hong Kong, Nanning, Aigun, Swatow [Shantou] and Canton [Guangzhou]. Many of Hedgeland’s postings were to remote ports such as Nanning or Aigun, where the foreign social circles would have been confined and social opportunities limited. His photographs of the club house and golf course in Nanning show the somewhat improvised nature of the entertainment available there. Hedgeland’s archive documents an experience of the Customs Service far removed from the foreign experience of Shanghai, Hong Kong or Peking [Beijing]. The silver vessels presented to him by local Chinese Customs officials are finely engraved with inscriptions in Mandarin and English.
£3,000-5,000

Condition:
The bowl is a little bent at the foot but could be easily straightened, otherwise the embossing in chasing is in quite good condition with occasional minor dents to the silver. The wood stand has been re-glued in places and has a small loss to the Pierced work on one side. Silver bowl weighs approximately 2115g not including stand

Sold for £23,000