A RARE ARCHAIC BRONZE WINE VESSEL, JIAO Late Shang Dynasty (2)A RARE ARCHAIC BRONZE WINE VESSEL, JIAOLate Shang DynastyThe deep U-shaped body rising from three splayed triangular blade legs to two flaring points, finely cast on each side with a taotie mask detailed with protruding eyes reserved on an intricate leiwen ground, divided on one side by a notched flange, and on the other by a vertical panel cast with an inscription reading □ xi □, beneath the loop handle issuing from a bovine head, all below a band of upright triangles, the satiny grey patina with some malachite-green encrustation, stand. 21.5cm (8 1/2in) high. (2).商晚期 青銅獸面紋角 Provenance:A Japanese private collection, acquired in OsakaAn Asian private collection 來源：:日本私人舊藏，購於大阪亞洲私人收藏Although many jue vessels exist, it is rarer to find its evolved counterpart jiao vessels like the present lot which appears to have been excavated only from tombs of high-ranking officials. See a similar late Shang dynasty bronze jiao in the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, illustrated in Zhongguo qingtongqi quanji, vol.3, Beijing, 1997, pl.31; another late Shang dynasty bronze jiao, excavated in Shandong province, is illustrated in Gems of Beijing Cultural Relics Series: Bronzes, Beijing, 2002, pl.30; compare also a bronze jiao of the same period with related decoration and more splayed feet, illustrated by P. F. Chen in Xiashangzhou qingtongqi yanjiu: Xia Shang pian, Shanghai, 2004, vol.2, pl.97; and a further example of a late Shang dynasty Tianmin fu yi jiao, from the Qing Imperial Collection, sold at Sotheby's New York, 19 March 2014, lot 103.尖唇，兩角飛鳥狀，口沿下飾蕉葉紋一周，蛋形鼓腹，前後鑄兩面饕餮紋，饕餮雙目作凸起乳釘，以雷紋填地，鋬作牛首，鋬內鑄銘文三字「□奚□」，腹下承三棱形腿，皮色青灰。 青銅角流行於商代晚期至西周早期。宋代《博古圖錄》將此器型之酒器稱為「角」，後世沿襲至今，而近年研究表明此類青銅角實為爵之變體，且比青銅爵級別更高，基本只出土於高級墓葬，經學者統計，存世青銅角總計僅74件，而青銅爵則超過兩千件，見陳洋撰，《酒禮重光—青銅角芻議》，載於《遼寧省博物館館刊 》，瀋陽，2009年，頁122-133。《禮記》記載：「宗廟之祭，貴者獻以爵，賤者獻以散，尊者舉觶，卑者舉角。」鄭玄注：「四升曰角。」然而從出土稀少的情況及實際的容量，古文獻中所謂「角」當另言他器，學者認為當是牛角形酒器，如台北中央研究院歷史語言研究所藏一件出土於殷墟之商代青銅角，見前文，頁124，圖1，同時著錄於《中國青銅器全集》，北京，1997年，卷3，編號35。此角三層滿工，俗稱「三層花」，可比較中國社會科學院考古研究所藏一件商晚期亞址角，見前書，編號31。另可比較一件山東出土之商晚期青銅角，著錄於《北京文物精粹大系‧青銅器卷》，北京，2002年，圖版30。上海博物館藏商晚期青銅角，紋飾類似，惟三足較撇，亦資參考，見陳佩芬著，《夏商周青銅器研究：夏商篇》，上海，2004年，下卷，編號97。清宮舊藏一件商晚期天黽父乙角也可參考之，2014年3月19日售於紐約蘇富比，拍品編號103。