Lot 166 , An impressive Chinese silver presentation tripod censer and cover, ding, probably Guangzhou, c.1927
An impressive Chinese silver presentation tripod censer and cover, ding, probably Guangzhou, c.1927, the body engraved with a Chinese inscription, ‘it is difficult for people to stay together for long, leaving only regret. Especially heartbreaking is the moment of saying goodbye. Deng Song, Acting Deputy Commissioner of Customs Guangdong’, the reverse with an eagle and a lion dog amid pine, applied with a pair of goldfish below high looped handles, the shoulder inscribed in English ‘To R.F.C. Hedgeland Commissioner of Customs, Canton from Tang Tsung Mun, Acting Deputy Commissioner, Canton, Native Customs 14th December 1927’, on three zoomorphic cabriole legs, the domed cover surmounted by the figure of an eagle, apparently unmarked, height 41cm, small dents
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.
£2,000-3,000
Condition:
There are occasional small dents to each side, it’s possible one of the handles has been re-soldered, otherwise in good condition. Approximate weight 1605 g. Silver confirmed, not plated.
Sold for £12,000