Qing Dynasty. temp. Qianlong gold Boat-Shaped Sycee of 10 Taels ND (c. 1750) AU, Cribb-Unl., Tang-Unl. 80x25mm. 366.41gm. Stamped on face in three sections, the top and bottom stamps both reading "Bao" (Precious) and the central stamp reading "Chen Ji" (assayer name). The back is similarly stamped in three sections, the right and left stamps reading "San Yi" (name of a treasure house) and the central stamp reading "Wang Pu" (King's Treasure House). An intriguing gold ingot that is quite unusual within the Chinese series; most of the gold ingots from Imperial China follow more standardized shapes in-line with the contemporary silver sycee used for taxation purposes, with those produced during the Republic down to the modern day following "waisted" or "trough"-shaped patterns. Some earlier bar-shaped ingots are, however, known from the time of the Song Dynasty (see Lawrence Adams Collection, CNG Triton XIX, January 2016, lots 2300 and 2301). The existence of this type came to light almost exclusively in association with the pieces recovered from the Geldermalsen, a Dutch East-Indiaman which wrecked in the South China Sea on 18 January 1752 on its way to Batavia, the cargo of which was recovered in 1984 (including porcelain and gold bullion). It may be that these specific ingots were produced more or less exclusively for foreign trade with the Dutch, rather than for any sort of domestic commerce or accounting. This lot can be submitted to Gong Bo Grading for certification after the auction at the buyer's request. If you would like to exploit this option, please contact HK@HA.com.

HID09801242017

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