A BRONZE 'CHILONG' INCENSE BURNERCast Di Lun two-character seal mark, 16th/17th centuryElegantly and heavily cast with apressed body supported on a short recessed foot gently rising to a waisted neck, one side decorated with a clamberingchilong grasping the rim, the bronze patinated to an attractive golden brown tone.12.2cm (4 3/4in) diam.Provenance: 十六/十七世紀 銅螭龍紋香爐陽文「帝錀」篆書款The mark readsDi Lun, which may be translated as 'Emperor's gold'.Bronze incense burners decorated with a singlechilong are relatively rare, where they are more often seen with twochi dragons. Thechilong handle on the present vessel may have taken its inspiration from those appeared on single- or two-handled jade c that started to gain popularity during the Ming dynasty. For an example of a jade cup with a singlechilong handle, seeCompendium of Collections in the Palace Museum: Jade 7 Ming Dynasty, Beijing, 2011, p.179, no.162.Compare examples of 16th/17th century bronze incense burners decorated with twochilong handles, in the collection of R.E. Kresko, illustrated inLater Chinese Bronzes: The Saint Louis Art Museum and Robert E. Kresko Collections, Saint Louis Art Museum, 2008, p.91, fig.5; also see an example sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 8 April 2010, lot 1967.此爐胎骨厚重，平口，束頸，扁腹圓鼓，圈足，器底有「帝錀」篆書款，甚為少見。腹外壁飾螭龍紋，螭龍上攀口沿，龍首上揚，脊骨畢露，尾巴向兩側分叉，身姿蜿蜒曼妙，構思簡單卻巧妙。此爐線條優美流暢，銅質細潤光潤，包漿自然，多為文房之用，文人追捧至極。銅爐飾成對螭龍者比單螭龍更為多見。本爐原形或自明代玉螭龍杯，見一玉杯飾有單螭龍紋，《故宮博物院藏品大系：玉器篇》，卷7，北京，2011年，頁179，編號162。其他飾螭龍紋銅爐例子，可參閱Robert E. Kresko收藏一例，著錄於《Later Chinese Bronzes: The Saint Louis Art Museum and Robert E. Kresko Collections》，聖路易斯藝術博物館，2008年，頁91，圖5；亦參考香港蘇富比售出一例，2010年4月8日，拍品1967。