Although chilong dragons frequently occur clambering upwards and over the rim of rhinoceros horn cups, the 'nine dragon' motif is less common and the presence of 'mature' dragons rather than chilong is rarer still, recalling the subject found on large 18th Century blue and white vases.

A rhinoceros horn libation cup with a multitude of chilong dragons was sold in our New York Rooms, 19 September 1996, lot 340; another signed ZI Sun Yong Bao was included in the Chinese Government Exhibits for the International Exhibition of Chinese Art in London, 1935, Catalogue, p. 61, no. 59.

(US$80,000-100,000)