Asianart.com | Associations | Articles | Exhibitions | Galleries

Seeking information on my Chinese Bronze Vessel from my Great Grandfathers estate. Col. Hugh Lincoln Cooper traveled the world engineering hydro electric power dams in the early 1900s. His daughter was a avid asian art collector mostly of elephants. My research tells me it's Shang or Western Zhou period in design. I think it's a "He". Appears to have phoenix birds, elephants, some sort of beasts on the spout. and the dragons. Thank you.

the casting of the decoration looks pretty well done but I'm less confident about the proportions of the various appendages to the body. Go to the Freer Gallery website (or those of other museums) and look for similar examples; the Freer has a good collection

There is a very similar vessel in the shanghia museum. I put a link to the page I found a photo of it on under the Link URL. Here are 2 more images of my bronze and a pic of my Great Grandfather abroad in the early 1900s. I took a lot of microscopic photos of the patina. The colorful crystal formations are amazing. This vessel is 8.5 lbs, stands 12in High and 14in Wide. It's not magnetic at all and makes a dull clanking when tapping the body or lid. The patina has no reaction to Acetone or Lacquer Thinner. I soaked it in both. Are there any other home tests I can do? Thanks!

From the appearance of the bronze color, patina and encrustation,this vessel appears to be genuine bronze He.Please do bring it to a reputable auction house for further authentication.

Thank you Daryl. I want to share these 3 random microscopic images of many I've taken with a USB digital microscope. Very little information online with photo details of genuine mineral patina formed over many millennia, and replica modern patina from short term burial patina, or acid treatment. Other then paint, as I ruled that out with solvents. Without much provenance, experts and auction houses seem very jaded and are quick to assume a bronze is a replica and can not be bothered. Is there any microscopic photos patina studies that are public online of pieces with documented provenance to compare, or is this a closely guarded secret of the experts? Also, some say real patina does not chip. Yet I see images of museum pieces with chips like mine where the piece is heavily encrusted. Mine has original surfaces around the collar, then blend into areas where it is so encrusted that the fine design details came off with the chips from past ruff handling I assume. Would this not be impossible to fabricate in the making? I've become fascinated in learning about this bronze. And also what makes some so valuable over others? Greatly appreciate any and all info. Thank You!

Asianart.com | Associations | Articles | Exhibitions | Galleries |