Art-11881 | TEFAF

eb9b67f9-06a6-4c2a-a495-50eb353cdf86

Bronze bell, nao, Southern China - Late Shang dynasty (c. 1600 - 1046 BC)

Exhibited by Gisèle Croës s.a.

Material Bronze with green and blue patina, malachite and azurite encrustation

Dimensions 57 × 37 cm

Place of Creation China

Price Available upon inquiry

Status Vetted

About the Work

Music played an important role in the state rituals of the Bronze Age in China.

Among the many instruments used in ceremonial rites, bronze bells are particularly magnificent and impressive. Chinese musical bells do not have interior clappers, but are instead completely hollow and must be struck on the exterior with a mallet to emit their sound. Almond-shaped in cross-section, each bell produced two distinct tones, depending on whether it was struck near its center or side edge.

Provenance

- Hang Cheong Trading Co, 1999
- Y. Chan, Wui Po Kok Antique Co., HK, 2002
- R. Preslier Collection, Switzerland, 2010
- Gisèle Croës, 2015

View artwork at TEFAF Maastricht 2026

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Gisèle Croës s.a. Bronze bell, nao, Southern China - Late Shang dynasty (c. 1600 - 1046 BC)

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