Lot 80
PAIR OF CHINESE GOLD 'MAKARA' EAR RINGS
SONG/JIN DYNASTY
Auction: 07 November 2025 from 10:00 GMT
Description
宋/金代 金質錘揲摩羯花卉紋茄式耳飾（一對）
each of aubergine form, one end with a large mythical creature makara head with scaly body and bulging eyes, a blossoming flower on leafy stalk issuing from makara's mouth, the narrow side further adorned with nine gold beads, with a later box (2)
Dimensions
3.5cm wide each; 6g in total
Provenance
Private collection, London
倫敦私人收藏
Footnote
The design of these earrings likely imitates aubergine, a popular type of imported vegetable from Silla during the Song/Jin period. Accordingly, Volume 29 of the Song Dynasty's Zhenglei Bencao states: ‘Aubergine, a species native to Silla, has a light purple hue, a long stem, and a sweet taste. Today, its seeds are found in a wide variety of vegetable gardens throughout China.' A pair of silver-gilt aubergine-shaped earrings, weighing a total of 4.4 grams, were unearthed from a Song Dynasty tomb in Gao'an County; they are outlined with a scrolling tendril in the centre and decorated with nine semicircles on the outer edges, and are closely comparable to the present example in shape and design. See Yang Zhishui, Types and Styles of Gold and Silver Jewelry Excavated from Southern Song Dynasty Tombs (webpage archive: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/MM6vUEw5EeQTnY1bnO59EQ).
The makara pattern, popular on Liao Dynasty earrings, was also adopted by the Song Dynasty. However, this imported pattern likely told a local story, the legend of the fish transforming into a dragon. For comparable gold makara-shaped earrings dated to the Liao dynasty: one pair was in the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, sold at Christie's New York, 26 Mar 2010, lot 1295; another pair is in the collection of the Guanfu Museum, Shanghai, see webpage: http://www.guanfumuseum.org.cn/view.php?cid=116&sid=1.
此耳環造型所仿應即宋金時人所喜的紫茄。宋《證類本草》卷二九云：「茄子，新羅國出一種，淡光微紫色，蒂長，味甘，今其子已遍中國蔬圃中。」高安縣宋墓出土一對銀鎏金紫茄式耳環，共重4.4克，中間勾勒纏枝卷草，外緣飾九個半圓，與本品形制極為相似。見揚之水：〈南方宋墓出土金銀首飾的類型與樣式〉 （參見網頁: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/MM6vUEw5EeQTnY1bnO59EQ）。
遼代耳環流行的摩羯紋也為宋代所採用，不過原是外來的摩羯紋這時候很可能已在講述本土故事，即魚化龍傳說。類似遼代金摩羯耳環：一對前賽克勒收藏，售於2010年3月26日紐約佳士得，拍品1295；另一對現藏於上海觀復博物館，參見網頁：http://www.guanfumuseum.org.cn/view.php?cid=116&sid=1。