ESOTERIC COLLECTING

Fig. 22. Qianlong Yuyong teabowl. Fig. 23. Narrow side view of metal glass boule. those honored from the North and West, hence the Mongolian and Ti– betan influence in the style. There is a great deal more to be found out about this group and the Ethnographical Museum in Stock– holm would be a good place to staIt, with its enormous collection of Mon– golian metalwork. As to the rather c1unky nature of some of these wares, weU, as we have seen, it's not what you collect so much as how you coUeet that makes for esoteric collecting, so for d1e budget con– scious wanting to hone their creative technique on something, this group might be a good place to stalt. Eventually, as we have seen, any esoteric path leads to only one point: transcendence of eveJyday consciousness into the realm of unified consciousness of the sages and saints of this world which grants, to paraphrase Anhur Waley, that great scholar of oriental cul– ture, such power as is inconceiv– able to those who have not person– ally experienced it. It would be expecting too much, however, of a brief lecture to enlighten us all on the spot-although it would make for a lecnlre we'd never forget. [n– stead, I hope at least that the past hour has been a little enlightening even if we aren't all glowing with personal halos just yet. NOTES 1. pCSBS23 (Autumn 1991) 5-26; JICSBS 24 (Spring 1992} 4-17; and .flCSBS 25 (Summer 1993} 4-19. 2. pCSBS23 (Autumn 1991} 18. 3. Yu Jianhua, ed., Zhongguo meisbujia remnillg cidian ('A Dictio– nalY of Famous Chinese Artists'). This lists artis£s" including paineel's, cqlligra– phers, seal calvers, poets, etc., but only the more famous of craftsmen who were nOI from tJ1e educated minority. Chen Naiqian, eel., Sbiming biehao s1/.oyin ('Index of Studio and An Names'), listing studio, retreat, libraly and other place-names adopted by vari– ous members of the influential minority over the centuries where used as a place name or as a bao or assumed art name. Zbongguo rel1min daziditl/l ("Com– prehensive Dictionary of Chinese Biog– raphy'). This is a biographical dictio– naty not limited to the arts. Herbert A. Giles, A Chinese Bio– graphical DictiollClJY, a work in Eng– lish, with Chinese characters for main names, along similar lines to the pre– ceding, again not focused on the arts while incorp0r3eing material on the ma– jor figures. Victoria Contag and Wang Chi-ch'ien, Seals o/Chinese Painters tllld Collectors ojtbelvling and Ch'ing Periods, seals and names of the better known painters and calligraphers and collec– tors of painting and caIJigraphy in China, in both English and Chinese. Arthur \Y/. Hummel, Eminent Chinese ojtbe Cb'ing Period. Biographical dic– tionary of Qing China. 1. Carrington Goodrich, ed. Diclio– lIaJy o/Ming Biograpby. The Ming equivalent of the above. Howard 1. Boorman, ed. Biograpbi– cal DictiOllaJY of Republican China. The Republic equivalem of the above. 4. Hugh Moss and others, The Arl oftbe Cb/nese Smiff Boltle, 77,ej &j Collection, no. 21. 16 5. Hugh Moss and others, A Trea– SIUY ofCbinese SnuffBottles, (Published to daee: Vol. 1, jade; Vol. 2, QUa/1Z, and Vol. 3, Stones other thanjacle and QUQ/1Z) 6. Liverpool Art Club, Catalogue of Specimens ofArt U70rk in Chinese Snuff Bottles cme! other Articles, in enamel, porcelain, (UOIY, etc.) connected with tbe use oftobacco. Forming part of (be collection ofU7m. Bragge, Esq., P5.A., FG.S.. etc. Shirle Hill, Birmil1gbam. 7. For further details, see Hugh Moss and others, The A,1 q(the Chinese SmiffBottle, no. 481, where a small volume of illustrations of the Bragge collection is discllssed.