CHINESE BRONZE CENSER INCENSE BURNER ENGRAVED IMPERIAL 9 DRAGON DECORATION

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CHINESE BRONZE CENSER INCENSE BURNER OR BOWL ENGRAVED WITH 9 DRAGON DECORATION AND THE MYSTERIOUS SYMBOL OF A DRAGON BOAT ON A HUGE WAVE. Incense in China is traditionally used in a wide range of Chinese cultural activities including, religious ceremonies, ancestor veneration, traditional medicine, and in daily life.Censer means incense burner.The Chinese traditionally developed a sophisticated art form with incense burning like they also did with tea and calligraphy. It was called xiangdao.It reached its height during the Song Dynasty with its nobility enjoying incense as a popular cultural pastime, to the extent of building rooms specifically for the use of incense ceremonies.Censers that arrived in the western world were almost never used for burning incense. They became display items,curiosities and often reached the window sill as bulb bowls.Instead of traces from years of usage they often bear spurs of improper use, adversely affected by water.We were lucky that this censer was in the collection of a rich family. They especially ordered an inner container which made it possible to protect the bronze body.We consider our pictures as an enormous help in describing our listings. So please, study them carefully and give yourself the time to enlarge them. We also ask you to pay attention to possible additions in questions and answers. If there are any questions, then please contact us. a - Description: Chinese bronze censer or incense bowl decorated with eleven 5 - clawed imperial dragons. Two of them surrounding the beautiful Hsuan Te mark.On the outside of the censer one fierce larger dragon is surrounded by eight smaller ones. We see them between clouds and above waves.There is also a matching separate stand which is decorated with creatures of the sea. b - Design: Traditional Chinese design.After we made our pictures, we counted the dragons and found out that the censer was divided in two scenes. One scene with a fierce confronting dragon with on both sides two small ones all with five claws on each paw. The other half showed us a mysterious small boat on a huge wave as central motif on this side of the censer. The myth of the nine dragons can easily be read on the internet. c - Origin: Antique Imperial China. d - Year of production: To our opinion nineteenth century though the design goes back to the Kangxi era. We hope that the info in our pictures gives you the right clues. e - Material and Technique: Brass or bronze, decorated with artistic engraving and hammering by hand. f - Dimensions and Weight: (All approx.) Height:10 cm : without stand.15 cm : separate stand included.Diameter:upper rim censer: 20 cm.base rim censer : 18.5 cm.handles included 31 cm.stand : 22 cm.Weight: � almost 8 kg. all together. g - Identification: The mark on the bottom is the imperial Hsuan Te seal. This mark is the imperial seal of this famous Emperor of the Ming dynasty. In later times this mark was often used as an indication of quality. h - Condition: Wonderful condition, also because of an exactly fitting inner container that was ordered here in the west to protect the censer. i - Shipping: We ship worldwide and do this for 100 US dollars by registered priority mail. Once you win you know your invoice. Payment: Paypal is accepted from all customers outside the Euro zone!European customers will be asked to pay us in Euro using IBAN and BIC-CODE ! This is an easy and safe way of paying. For all transactions: NO CHEQUES (or 20 euro charge + at least 2 weeks delay). About us: We do our best to describe the items in a professional way. This means as serious and honest as we think is necessary for a potential buyer to make a good decision. Of course we can make mistakes but are always communicative, and try to solve eve... read more

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