A LUDUAN-FORM BRONZE CENSER, MING DYNASTYChina, 1368-1644. Finely cast standing foursquare, the chest of the hollow body with a long strip of scaling, the sides with swirls and stylized ruyi-heads, flanking a short tail. The hinged cover rendered in the form of a single-horned head with bulging eyes, scrolling mane, and funnel-shaped ears, the mouth wide open revealing tongue and teeth.Provenance: Galerie Gross, Wiesbaden, Germany, 12 December 1980. An old German private collection, according to the family acquired from the above, and thence by descent.Condition: Very good condition with expected old wear and casting irregularities. The hinge original and remarkably well-preserved, thus functioning properly. A few minuscule nicks and small dents. Naturally grown, rich and very dark patina overall.Weight: 4,612 gDimensions: Height 30 cm (excl. base, incl. pegs) and 33.5 cm (incl. base)With an old wood base. (2)The throne of the Emperor of China in the Hall of Supreme Harmony in the Forbidden City in Beijing has two incense burners shaped as luduan, the legendary auspicious creatures who can travel 18,000 li (9,000 km) in a single day and speak all world languages. A legend says that a luduan once appeared to Genghis Khan and convinced him to abandon his efforts to conquer India.Luduan are mythical creatures with strong lion bodies, a single horn and the paws of a bear. They are believed to have the ability to foretell the future, give life to the good, and kill the evil. According to legend, they were originally known as ‘jiaoduan’, and their name changed to ‘luduan’ because the character for ‘lu’ matched their appearance better. Known as guardians of enlightened rulers, luduan were said to appear in areas where a wise and virtuous leader was present.The auspicious nature of luduan was particularly appropriate for the purpose of these censers. Cast with hinged or removable heads, they were made for burning incense and smoke would emerge from the beast’s mouth, animating and empowering the sculpture. As Chuimei Ho and Bennet Bronson note in their discussion of a pair of Qianlong cloisonné enamel examples from the Palace Museum, Beijing, included in the exhibition ‘Splendors of China's Forbidden City, The Glorious Reign of Emperor Qianlong’ by The Field Museum, Chicago, 2004, these burners were traditionally valued at the Imperial Court, as with their open mouths and smoke billowing forth, they were a reminder to the emperor that he should always be receptive to honest advice (see page 37).The origin of incense burners of this form is difficult to determine. An example attributed to the Song dynasty was recovered from the Ming dynasty tomb of the scholar-official Zhang Shupei (1552-1615) in Tonglian, Sichuan (Wenwu, 1989, no. 7, pp 45-46, figs 14-16). Mythical beast incense burners, however, became a popular model only from the Xuande period onwards. A censer in the for