A RARE AND IMPORTANT BRONZE RITUAL WINE VESSEL, EASTERN ZHOU DYNASTY, SHANXI OR HEBEI, CHINA, 7TH-5TH CENTURY BCPublished: Friedrich Georg Zeileis, Von Shang bis Qing - Dreieinhalb Jahrtausende Chinesischer Bronze (From Shang to Qing – Three and a Half Millenia of Chinese Bronze), 1999, pages 252-253, no. 86.Superbly cast, the globular body rising to a short waisted neck with an everted rim, densely decorated with rectangular panels full of archaic scrolls divided by rope-twist bands, all neatly incised in fine relief. The bronze with a rich, solid, naturally grown patina with malachite and cuprite encrustation.Provenance: A noted private collection in New York, assembled since the 1920s. E & J Frankel Ltd., New York, early 1990s. Friedrich Georg Zeileis, acquired from the above, according to his publication. E & J Frankel was a major New York gallery specializing in Asian Art since 1967. Run by Edith (1939-2012) and Joel Frankel (1937-2018), it was one of the oldest galleries in the United States focusing exclusively on Asian art. Leaders in their field, the Frankels traveled the world in search of Asian art treasures and educated the general public about their shared passion. Their gallery on Madison Avenue in New York City became a local institution, best known for its regular schedule of innovative thematic exhibitions, and frequently visited by the biggest names in the field, such as Eskenazi, Ellsworth, Junkunc, and the Alsdorfs. Dr. Friedrich Georg Zeileis (b. 1939) is a retired physician who built an important collection of ancient Chinese jades and bronzes. He was also a pianist andposer, and published several books, as well as catalogs of his substantial art collections, including fine Chinese jades and bronzes.Condition: Very good condition,mensurate with age, displaying spectacularly. Extensive old wear, minor dents, small nicks, light scratches, minute losses, signs of weathering and erosion, soil encrustations. Absolutely original with no fills or repairs whatsoever! A Zhou-dynasty bronze in such a well-preserved state must be considered exceedingly rare.Weight: 2,628 gDimensions: Height 23.5 cmSeveral names have been given to vessels of this shape. A variety of designations, including lei, ling, fou, and pou, appear in inscriptions cast on the everted rims of some of these bronzes, even vessels closelyparable in shape. This type first appeared in the late Shang/early Western Zhou period, and the first versions typically had a long neck and sharply angled shoulders. By the end of the eighth century, the necks on these vessels had be proportionately shorter, and the shoulders more rounded. With its sharply angled shoulders and short neck, the present vessel would appear to represent a transitional period in the vessel's development.Expert’s note: According to the Zeileis publication, the present lot was judged by Dr. W. Thomas Chase, retired Head Conservato