Figure of a crouching stag with horns (forgery)

Object Details

• Description

  Clay: fine-grained, light buff stoneware.

  Decoration: hollow with opening in back; linear designs all over body and head.

• Provenance

  To 1950

  Jun Tsei Tai (1911-1992), Hong Kong and New York, to August 1950. [1]

  From 1950 to 1960

  C. T. Loo & Company, New York, purchased from Jun Tsei Tai in August 1950. [2]

  From 1960

  Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from C. T. Loo & Company on July 22, 1960. [3]

  Notes:

  [1] See C. T. Loo's stockcard no. LI-5/153: "Pottery statuette of a standing deer with legs partly folded. Three horned antler. Head and body incised with wide meander. White pottery oval hole on back. Found in An Yang. Shang," copy in object file.

  According to an annotation on the stockcard, the object was acquired from J. T. Tai in August 1950.

  Information that the figure was found in Anyang was proved to be erroneous when the figure was confirmed to be a modern forgery.

  Jun Tsei Tai (more commonly known in the West as J. T. Tai), known also as Dai Fubao in Shanghai, was a successful art dealer who was initially based in Shanghai China. Tai became one of C. T. Loo's most prolific suppliers in the 1940s. In 1949, however, J. T. Tai fled with his family to Hong Kong, when Communist leaders came into power. In 1950, he immigrated to New York City, where he established J. T. Tai & Company, a successful company that specialized in the sale of Chinese arts.

  [2] See C. T. Loo's stockcard cited in note 1.

  [3] See Invoice issued by Executor of the Estate of C. T. Loo, dated July 22, 1960, copy in object file.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Previous custodian or owner

  Jun Tsei Tai 戴潤齋 (1911-1992)

  C.T. Loo & Company (1914-1948)

• Origin

  China

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Sculpture

• Restrictions and Rights

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1900s, 1960s

• Name

  Tai, Jun Tsei, C.T. Loo & Company

• Place

  China

• Topic

  Stag, Art, Chinese Art, Forgery, Ceramics, Modern period (1912 - present)

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Sculpture