A BRONZE TRIPOD CENSER, SONG YUE LÜ MARK, 17TH-18TH CENTURY China. The censer has a compressed body raised on three conical supports, and a pair of 'bridge'-shaped handles that rise in a graceful curve from the rim. The base crisply cast with a recessed square panel enclosing a three-character mark.

Inscriptions: To base, ‘Song Yue Lü’ (Companion of Pine and Moon).

Provenance: Christie’s South Kensington, 10 September 1987 (according to collector’s notes). Collection of John Burke da Silva, acquired from the above and thence by descent within the same family. A handwritten note by the collector, describing the present lot and recording its purchase from Christie’s, accompanies this lot. John Burke da Silva CMG (1918-2003) joined the Foreign Office after the war. The job took him to many parts of the world. His love of Chinese porcelain stemmed from a posting to the Embassy in Rome in 1954, where he happened to stay in a rented flat that housed a large collection of Chinese and Japanese works of art. He studied the subject learning from books and visiting museums, eventually joining the Oriental Ceramics Society in 1960, and serving on their Council and as Honorary Treasurer until 1994.
Condition: Very good condition with old wear and some casting flaws, few small nicks and dents, occasional light scratches. Fine, naturally grown patina with areas of dark and malachite encrustation.

Weight: 1,177 g
Dimensions: Diameter 13.7 cm (at the widest points)

Auction result comparison: Compare a related bronze censer, 23.5 cm wide, with the same mark and also dated 17^th-18^th century, at Bonhams London in Fine Chinese Art on 8 November 2018, lot 267, sold for GBP 13,750. Compare a closely related bronze censer, 23.2 cm wide, but with an apocryphal Xuande mark and dated to the 18^th century, of near-identical form, at Christie’s New York in Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art on 22 March 2013, lot 1284, sold for USD 13,750.

十七至十八世紀“松月侶“款青銅橋耳三足爐
中國。橋耳流暢，乳足圓碩，爐身豐滿，比例協調，線條爽朗。底鑄”松月侶“ 三字篆書款。.

來源：南肯辛頓佳士得，1987年9月10日 (根據藏家備註)。John Burke da Silva收藏，購於上述收藏并保存在同一家族至今。隨附藏家來源備註。John Burke da Silva CMG (1918-2003) 戰後加入外交部，從而可以環游世界。 他對中國瓷器的熱愛源於 1954 年在羅馬大使館任職時期，當時他碰巧住在一間租來的公寓裡，樓裡面收藏了大量中國和日本的藝術品。他通過書本學習並參觀博物館，最終於 1960 年加入東方陶瓷學會，在其理事會任職並擔任名譽司庫直至 1994 年。
品相：狀況極好，有舊磨損和一些鑄造瑕疵，少量小劃痕和凹痕，局部有輕微劃痕。自然生長的細膩的包漿，帶有深色和孔雀石綠結殼。

重量：1,177 克
尺寸：直徑13.7 厘米 (最寬處)

拍賣結果比較: 比較一件相近的青銅爐，寬 23.5厘米，同一款識，十七至十八世紀，見倫敦邦翰思 Fine Chinese Art 2018年11月8日 lot 267, 售價GBP 13,750 ；比較一件相近的青銅爐，寬 23.2厘米，但有宣德款，十八世紀，相似外形，見紐約佳士得Fine Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art 2013年3月 22日 lot 1284, 售價USD 13,750。