asked us a few weeks ago a gentleman in our opinion, a Chinese seal, which had been handed him. As it turned out, it was a very special stamp made of green jade, which was associated with an unusual provenance. It came from the Forbidden City in the Imperial palace in Beijing, and was intended for use by the Empress Dowager Ci Xi (Empress Dowager) were determined.
Since this information requires of course a serious verification, we made our own opinion of the matter. And this was an impressive historical dimension of this seal.
In 1900 came the invasion of a total of eight foreign Powers in Beijing, then the center of the Manchurian Qing dynasty. The comprehensive capture of the capital of the Chinese empire was a high point in a dramatic transformation, which is associated with the name "Boxer Rebellion". That it came time for extravagant, reckless and widespread looting of art and cultural goods is well known. Some detail the issue HERE is treated.
The seal of green jade came into the hands of a Prussian naval officer and surgeon, remained after 1900 a few years in the region between Beijing and Jiaozhou. This doctor is the grandfather of current owner. It is assumed that he had received it as compensation or as a thank you for his service as a doctor and that he himself was not aware of where it came from. Anyone with looting of cultural property in Beijing in 1900 deals that can confirm that during the relevant period, numerous objects from the imperial city disappeared. In the literature there are reports that even tunnels have been dug under the walls, to organize regular, taking place at night "booty" tours.
Which way, however, took this seal, 1900-2011? How is it that today, or not until today, appears once again?
to these issues can be found a wealth of material which was collected by the present owners. These include letters of the former Navy doctor, and documentation of a museum of East Germany - it is not just the story of a cultural object which came from the center of the former Chinese empire out and was taken to the West, but at the same time it is also a German- German history, which throws a spotlight on the treatment of cultural goods and the issue of property claims after the Fall. Moreover, it is
a story of extremes in the international art trade. For now, the seal will go on sale and find his way back to China. Whether in the hands a private collector arrives or if there will ever be seen in a museum for the public, we do not know. In any case, it is now a well-traveled cultural property that has undergone more than a century in Europe. This background makes the seal of a lot more exciting than the fact that it had been made for the Empress Dowager. Of course, it is important that this information and existing documents are not lost on the sale.
us for the story itself is simply a piece of passion. Finally, we know the historical dimension of such an object - and this is not least one of the reasons why there are Asian-Ankauf.de.
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